Deck Of Trumps
by Frotate
Summary: Sakura had always wanted to be like her friends: as protective as Naruto, as calm as Sasuke, and as confident as Ino. What happens when she's granted her wish in the form of Shugo Charas? Sakura X Many
1. And So It Begins

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Shugo Chara. THERE'S A SAD ON MY FACE.**

**Chapter One: And So It Begins**

This was not part of the plan.

She was supposed to be out there, not in here. She was supposed to be dry, not soaking wet. She was supposed to be hidden, not found. She was supposed to be with her _team, _not withsome _goons._

Haruno Sakura was not amused. Her wet petal pink locks were plastered to her face with some droplets of rain falling to the already wet floor. She was cold and grumpy and her teammates had yet to find out that she was gone. Oh, yes. Haruno Sakura was, indeed, not amused.

"Tch. Boss won't be happy when he finds out that there was a kid snooping around outside."

"He'll be even less happy if we try to hide it from him."

They were literally dragging her across the red carpeted floor, passing numerous doors, towards what would probably be their boss's office. One of them was gripping her right arm while the other gripped her left. She was sure that there would be hand marks by the time they let go, and yet, she couldn't bring herself to care as she was currently devising an escape plan.

'_Come on, Kura. You gotta think. Just concentrate and think!' _She'd probably be able to just kick them both where it hurts and make a run for it, but they might alert the other guards before her team finishes the mission. She had to escape, yes, but the mission was top priority, not her. Thus, she had to find a way to escape without causing a riot.

'_Dammit! I wouldn't even be here if that _stupid_ ice cream truck just minded its own business! Who the hell sells ice cream at this time anyways?'_

~FLASHBACK~

_It was dark and quiet. The only thing that could be heard was the soft sound of raindrops hitting cement. It was drizzling lightly. Far too lightly to penetrate the leaves that the trees have-_

"_Ne, Sakura-chan, I'm awesomer than Sasuke-teme, right?" The loud voice of Uzumaki Naruto rang through the silent night followed by a loud thump and even louder wailing. _

"_Shut up, dobe. We're on a mission. You'll get us spotted." Uchiha Sasuke's voice was silent and deadly as his obsidian eyes narrowed slightly at his knuckle-headed teammate. _

"_We'll be going in now, so if you two don't shut up, I'm bringing Sakura-chan with me instead." It was said in a teasing manner, but the two knew better than to put it past Hatake Kakashi than to go through with his word._

_The blonde suddenly had a concerned expression on his face as he turned to the only female in the team. "Are you sure you're gonna be okay alone, Sakura-chan?" His voice was unusually soft as his bright blue eyes were searching the pinkette's face for any trace of hesitation. _

_The short girl made an unladylike snort and playfully punched her blond-haired teammate on the arm. "Of course, Naruto! I'm not a little girl anymore! I can take care of myself." She huffed out her chest in pride as she smiled reassuringly at the rest of her team. They all returned her smile in their own little way and stood up from behind the tree and started to walk discreetly towards the building._

_As soon as her team was out of sight, the familiar tune of an ice cream truck caught her attention. Her head snapped towards the general direction the sound was coming from and a white truck with a big popsicle in the middle, drove into view momentarily, next to the pavement near an apartment complex. Before she knew it, she was making her way towards the truck while humming the tune under her breath. She quickly bought an ice cream cone and began to walk away, casting one last glance behind her to make sure that no one was watching her, before silently running back to her dry hiding place. _

"_They just got in. They won't be that fast." She was heartily licking her chocolate ice cream without a care in the world, thinking that the sound of the rain, which was getting heavier by the minute, would disguise the sound of her loud slurping. She knew she thought wrong when the sound of footsteps easily caught her attention through the thick rain._

'That's not right. They shouldn't be back yet.' _Two huge shadows suddenly appeared behind her, blocking her light. _

'Oh no…'

~FLASHBACK~

"-ey, brat! Show some respect to your elders!"

Her head snapped towards the man on her left, viridian eyes burning defiantly as she glared up at the much taller, heavier man.

"I'll do that when you earn it, old man!" She knew what was going to happen. She had it all played out in her head. He was going to loosen her grip on her and attempt to hit her, then she, Sakura, would use this to her advantage and knock them both unconscious, resulting in her escape.

"What did you say?" She felt his grip loosen, if only slightly, on her arm as he turned to look at her, his face red with anger.

'_Bingo.' _ A lightning bolt appeared on the headband she wore, replacing the Leaf symbol that was once engraved there.

She tugged her arm free and landed a well deserved kick to his torso, being too short to reach his head. She then twisted slightly, using the man's stomach as leverage, and threw a punch towards the one still holding her arm, thus making him let go. They both keeled and held their pained parts, leaving themselves vulnerable to the waiting pre-teen. She hit the pressure points in their necks simultaneously and they fell over, unconscious. She dragged the two goons one-by-one behind a large plant, frowning a bit at how heavy they were.

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall." A smirk played across her lips as her headband turned back to normal, as if there hadn't just been a lightning bolt instead of the Leaf symbol that was usually there.

"Sakura-chan?" A familiar, yet confused voice echoed through the hallway, as Sakura turned around to face her teammates.

"Hey guys!" She looked over at them, a sheepish grin etched on her face as she scratched the back of her head awkwardly, noting that her hair was a tad dry.

"What are you doing here?" Her vibrant eyes made contact with the lone black eye of her sensei, then proceeded to the folders he was carrying under his arm.

She shrugged and spotted an open window, just out of reach to the short girl. She shot her team a pleading look before hearing them sigh and head towards her. The tall, blond boy stepped in front of her and laced his fingers together tightly, then nodded at the obviously smaller pinkette. Sakura ran towards him and stepped into his hand, as he propelled her upwards and through the window. The green eyed girl landed softly on the grass, just outside the Easter building. She looked to her sides and found that her teammates had already made it out right after her. Damn them for their height.

"Long story short, ice cream is a trap."

She could feel the curious stares of the boys on her and she sighed slightly before heading off towards Tsunade's apartment.

* * *

><p>"…"<p>

When Tsunade opened the door, she expected to see dry, smiling people.

Key word being _expected._

What she did see however was only half of what she expected to. Standing in front of her was Team 7, clad in wet clothing with sheepish smiles on their faces, or in Sasuke's case, a bored look.

"Why are you all wet?" Her eyebrow twitched slightly as they made their way inside, making a wet trail across her cream carpeted floor.

Kakashi held out a somewhat dry folder towards the annoyed elder blonde lady. She took it from his grasp and pushed them out of her apartment quickly, as to not get anything else wet. Not that her apartment was too small to fit all of them. No, not at all. It had a homey feel, as Sakura always said.

She sat down on her white colored couch as she opened the file eagerly. She scanned through it, honey colored eyes getting wider with each line she read, until her face finally broke out into a grin as she shut the folder. She put it carefully onto the glass coffee table as to not dirty it, and walked over to the kitchen. Her eyes scanned the numerous cupboards above the sink and the stove, stopping at one and opening it, revealing a pack of sake. She took it and walked back to the living room, putting the pack down beside the file she had just previously read. She made a quick call before finally giving her undivided attention towards her beloved sake.

"This calls for a celebration." And celebrate she did.

* * *

><p><em>BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEE-<em>

A sickening crunching sound pierced through the peaceful silence as the alarm clock was brutally crushed to pieces under a tiny pale hand. Pink locks leaked through the blanket and shifted slightly as a loud groan resounded through the room. Green oculars blinked open and looked over the room for anything unusual.

"Kura-chan! Kura-chan!" Her head snapped towards the tiny voice, eyes settling on a floating figure above her broken alarm clock. Light filled the room through the gap in between her curtains, momentarily blinding her as she slowly adapted to the brightness.

"Get up, you lazy bum! You're gonna be late for school!" The pinkette narrowed her eyes at the small figure that was now floating directly above her, its arms crossed above its chest with a mischievous glint in her mismatching eyes. She had choppy, layered, shoulder length, light brown hair with a fringe that rested right above a yellow eye and an orange one. She wore a light orange shirt that had a bright yellow lightning bolt in the middle with two belts making an "X" over the tee, above black shorts that ended mid-thigh. Brown ankle-high combat boots covered the lower part of her rainbow stockings that ended above her knees.

"Stop lying, Taiga. Even I wouldn't be able to wake up this early after a mission!" A second floating figure stood next to Taiga, looking nothing like the aforementioned Chara. Her blonde hair was down, ending somewhere in the middle of her back, while her blood red eyes were fixed on the sleepy pinkette with a somewhat sympathetic look. Her red tank top had a flowery design on them. Black biker shorts could be seen from under the pink skirt she had on, her red ballet flats on her feet with red ribbons decorating them. Compared to the former Chara, she looked more girly, and hyper.

"Taiga, Rai, it would be wise to lower down your voices this early in the morning." The two floating girls made way for a third to come in between them. She had raven hair that was in an elegant braid resting on her back all the way down to her waist and eyes that were an icy blue. A dark blue Lolita dress that fell to her knees with black strings crisscrossing down the front of her upper half, revealing a black inner, was what she wore. Black laces outlined the dress, making it seem more elegant. Blue and black striped tights could be seen covering the rest of her legs, reaching her feet, though they were cover with black Mary Jane's. A black tiara was resting on the side of her head on a thin headband.

"Good morning, Taiga, Rai, Kaori." The pinkette stretched and sat up, white sheets falling to her waist to reveal a baggy shirt. Each Chara nodded to their owner when their names were called, moving aside to let the girl get ready.

"It should be illegal for school to be this early." The small girl walked over to her bathroom with her school uniform in hand. She took a quick shower, ridding herself of whatever dirt could have gotten on her during her short, but much needed sleep. She put on black shorts under her red mid-thigh plaid skirt, wearing knee-high red and black striped socks to match her black school shoes. She wore a white dress shirt, not fully buttoning it, and put the red tie loosely around her neck. She left the black blazer unbuttoned and tied her Leaf headband on her upper right arm.

"Let's go guys." She grabbed her brown satchel and lazily snatched three eggs off her desk: an orange one with a yellow lightning bolt, a red one with a pink ribbon, and a blue one with a black tiara.

She slowly made her way through the apartment complex, still a little drowsy from lack of sleep.

"Sakura-chan!" The owner stopped, together with her Charas, and turned to look at her ever-so hyper teammate.

The pinkette waited for him to catch up to her, taking in his different uniform and frowning slightly.

"How could you be this happy in the morning? I thought that was impossible." They continued walking again, although this time, they were side-by-side.

Naruto chuckled beside his grumpy friend and patted her head solemnly. "It's a tough job, Sakura-chan. You'll never be able to do it." The smaller girl saw him wink from the corner of her eyes, as she felt herself shake her head slightly.

* * *

><p>As Sakura walked through the gates of Seiyo Academy, she felt that she died a little from the noise that the crowd was producing.<p>

"It's the Guardians!"

"Ah! I think Tadase-sama looked this way!"

"Nadeshiko-sama definitely waved at me!"

"Look at Kukai-sama!"

"Yaya-sama is so adorable!"

She continued to make her way through the crowd and spotted a familiar head of pink.

"Amu-chan!" Said girl turned towards Sakura, a light blush covering her cheeks, looking as if she had just got caught staring at someone.

"Sakura-chan." The other pinkette started walking towards her. Sakura noticed that the taller girl had a protective hand over her bag.

"Wait!" A hand shot out of nowhere, latching itself onto Amu's shoulder. The girl looked enraged and turned to face the unlucky person who was going to face her wrath.

"Don't act as if you know me, 'Little Prince.'" She slapped the blond boy's hand away and turned, walking away from the students shouting.

"Cool and Spicy!"

* * *

><p>"-Anyone with a suggestion please raise your hand."<p>

Sakura scanned the room for anyone stupid enough to actually say something. She was sitting together with the other fourth graders and beside Hinamori Amu. Her Shugo Charas were tucked safely inside her bag, although unknown to her, the taller pinkette also had three eggs hidden inside the confines of said girl's satchel.

"Yes! I'm sorry! I like you!"

The voice was so unbearably loud that it was hard to ignore the fact that that voice was coming from someone beside her. Green eyes clashed with yellow as she stared bewildered at the girl standing in front of her, hand raised, and eyes sparkling.

"We are currently in the middle of an assembly. Please discuss opinions that deal with the topic at hand. And… there is someone else that I like. I'm sorry." Hotori Tadase looked solemn as he turned to scan the room for any more suggestions.

Amu's cheeks flushed red as she ran out the doors of the auditorium. A lightning bolt replaced the Leaf symbol that was there momentarily and the smaller pinkette, although they were the same age, stood up and glared at the Prince.

"Jerk! You could've said it a little nicer?" her voice was dripping with venom as she sneered at the shocked blonde. She ran out the room, the Leaf symbol returning, as she looked for her fellow Chara bearer that was beside her seconds ago.

"AAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Sakura's head snapped towards the source of the voice that wasn't too far from where she was. She spotted a construction site and stopped directly in front of a hole, inside of which was the person she was looking for.

"Amu-chan!"

A head of pink hair looked up towards Sakura and breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Sakura-chan. You want to help me out?" As the smaller girl was about to reach into her bag and pull out an orange egg, a pink one flew out of Amu's bag. It had a tartan design and had pink hearts all over the middle, inside a thick black line surrounded by smaller black hearts. The egg cracked and revealed a small girl with pink shoulder length hair that had a small portion tied with a heart clip. She wore a pink visor to block out the sun from her pink eyes and had on a pink cheerleading dress with red shoes to match.

"You can do it yourself, Amu-chan! Chara Change! From a girl who can't jump, to a girl who can!"

Small light pink wings appeared on Amu's wrists and ankles and the little pink Chara looked thrilled.

"Hop! Step! Jump!"

And with that, Sakura watched as her friend bounded off, high off the ground and landed herself on top of a tall building. Even with the long distance between the two, the green eyed girl could still hear the other girl screaming her head off. She found it amusing, until something, or was it someone, caught her eye. It didn't worry the girl much though, seeing as the teenage boy didn't look like a threat. No person in their right mind would dress up as a cat and expect to look intimidating. She was at peace, eyebrows raised in amusement, eyes wide with laughter, until the boy tried getting Amu's bag. She still didn't feel threatened, knowing that she could just get the eggs back once she transformed with Taiga. And that was when she saw Amu jump off, grab her eggs and come pelting to ground. She felt threatened. She felt worried. Heck, she felt _scared._

Green eyes narrowed up as she reached into her bag and pulled out an egg.

"Taiga. Let's go." She glanced at her Chara and saw her nod, different colored eyes burning with determination.

"Chara Change!" Her headband, that was currently tied to her right arm, turned into a lightning bolt as Sakura took off, expertly jumping over the cones and hurdles the construction site had lying around. She could hear the taller pinkette scream in fear as she pumped her feet to go faster in order to get there on time.

"Gotcha!" She caught Amu just in time, although her eyes were dilated with fear, her breathing was shallow and she was shivering slightly. She set the girl down and her ears perked up when she heard someone behind them. She stepped protectively in front of her taller classmate and relaxed a bit when she saw that it was the Little Prince.

"_Holy Crown!" _There was a golden crown on his head, she noted. And a scepter in his hand. A small Shugo Chara floated near his head looking kingly and authoritative.

"Well, well. If it isn't the Kiddie King." The cosplay boy didn't look too happy at the sight of one of the Guardians. He looked tenser, more guarded. His eyes darted from the eggs Amu cradled in her arms, to the King, to Sakura, to Taiga, then back again.

"Tsukiyomi Ikuto! Cat thief!" Tadase pointed his scepter at the boy with the cat ears. Something clicked into Sakura's head. Not only did the Prince have a Shugo Chara, the weird cosplay guy had one too.

Ikuto, as the blonde had so kindly put it, smirked tauntingly and snapped his fingers. A giant cat's paw appeared seemingly out of nowhere and was aimed towards them.

"_Holy Crown!" _The Prince ran in front of the two pinkettes and a shield formed to protect them from the cat thief's attack.

Viridian eyes narrowed dangerously at the spot the high schooler was previously standing.

"He ran away!" The crown and scepter disappeared from the blonde's reach as he walked briskly towards the pinkette that was still sitting on the ground. She was clutching her cheek and there seemed to be a little blood on it.

"You're bleeding. Are you hurt?" Sakura watched in amusement as Amu's face burned red with embarrassment. The Prince had just wiped off the blood with his own handkerchief and told her that he'd protect her. He then proceeded to tell her to go back to class and that she had nothing to worry about.

"Haruno-san, please take care of her. I'll be taking my leave." And with that, Hotori Tadase, Prince of the School and the King's Chair of the Guardians, walked away, his blue checkered cape billowing in the wind behind him.

Sakura discreetly watched the taller girl turn an even deeper shade of red as she tightly clutched the handkerchief to her chest.

"You must really like him, huh?" Loud laughter escaped through the standing girl's lips as she helped up her friend and started walking hand-in-hand back towards the school grounds.


	2. The Friendships of Haruno Sakura

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Shugo Chara. SADNESS.**

**Chapter Two: The Friendships of Haruno Sakura**

Haruno Sakura was running late.

She had forgotten to buy a new alarm clock to replace the one that she had previously broken. Dammit. It wasn't her fault that alarm clocks were outrageously loud. And noisy. And-

"Kura-chan! You're seriously gonna be late if you keep spacing out!" The orange Chara pushed the girl forward, although it didn't really make a difference.

"Okay, okay! AH! This just _had_ to happen!"

She was frantically running now, towards the school at a fast pace. She was already ten minutes late and she knew it. The familiar gates of Seiyo Academy greeted her as she went past them and ran towards the fourth grade Star group classroom. She took a peek inside and noticed that her teacher was nowhere to be seen, as was one of her other classmates. She opened the door and shut it behind her once she was inside, gaining the attention of the rest of the class. She walked over to the teacher's desk and erased the "Tardy" that was written beside her name. The pinkette ignored the stares of her stunned classmates and made her way towards the empty seat beside the taller pinkette and plopped down onto it.

"Sakura-chan, the Guardians invited us to tea this afternoon." The exhausted girl looked up into the yellow eyes that were undoubtedly her friend's.

"Do we have to?" Her head dropped loudly onto her desk as she saw her fellow classmate nod. A loud groan, of both pain and annoyance, filled the classroom of spectators.

* * *

><p>As amusing as fourth grade Star group's gym class was, Haruno Sakura's mind was off to dream land as her head lolled back. The soft breeze played with her hair as she lied back comfortably on the grassy fields where the rest of the class was waiting for their turn on the horizontal bar. She was watching the clouds go by with a peaceful expression on her face.<p>

Of course, Sakura, being Sakura, would obviously jump the chance of getting high grades, but the girl just seemed to be out of it.

"Haruno. You're up." The pinkette sat up lazily and turned to look at their teacher, a woman that looked to be in her mid-twenties, who sent her an expectant look. A tiara replaced the symbol on her headband and her expression quickly turned into one of indifference.

"I do not wish to participate." She resumed her former position and continued to gaze at the clouds.

The class blinked at their usually bright classmate and shrugged it off. She was probably just tired.

* * *

><p>Art class was a bang.<p>

Students were drawing left and right, some showing off, others criticizing, while the rest just minded their own business.

"Sakura-chan?"

"Hm?" Sakura replied without even taking her eyes off of her sketchpad.

Her drawing was fairly average. Not too detailed, not too poorly drawn. It was just ordinary. Not that she cared. No. Not at the moment. Her mind was elsewhere, wandering through multiple thoughts and concerns.

"Are you done?"

At this, the petite girl looked up and her eyes clashed with ones that reminded her so much of her best friend. They were clear and bright and round and sky blue. Yes. These were definitely her eyes.

"Yeah." She put her sketchpad into the awaiting hands of the girl in front of her while a huge smile was plastered on her face and stood to leave, when she noticed that Amu was no longer in the classroom.

* * *

><p>"Welcome to the Royal Garden!"<p>

The smaller of the two nodded in acknowledgement before quickly scanning the room.

Light filtered through the whole structure. It was practically made of glass; the walls, the ceiling, the door, everything. Different types of plants surrounded a square in the middle of the room with numerous other paths leading away from it. There was a lone, circular, white table with matching chairs surrounding it. The Guardians sat around it, tea cups and pastries visible in their hands.

Haruno Sakura and Hinamori Amu were impressed by the place. Although the former of the two had an easier time concealing it, due to the fact that her best friend owned a flower shop.

"Please come in, Hinamori-san, Haruno-san." Both girls took a step forward and sneaked a glance at each other. Amu's Charas were floating on either side of her: the pink one on the right and a blue one, which must've just hatched considering that she didn't see it before, on her left.

'_They all have Shugo Charas.' _After a quick survey of the Guardians, green eyes widened slightly in realization as she looked at each and every Chara floating near their respective owners.

The two pinkettes sat beside each other, the shorter one sitting near a boy she dubbed to be the eldest and the taller one sitting beside her beloved Prince. Sakura chuckled lightly as her companion fidgeted in her seat, looking rather embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"You shouldn't be tense. Just relax. We have tea and scones today." A black haired girl elegantly poured some tea into cups and handed them lightly towards the new comers, before motioning for them to get some snacks. Sakura, being oblivious to the tense aura her friend was giving off, grabbed one and happily munched on it.

"I think we should start with introductions. I am the Guardians' King's Chair, Hotori Tadase. I believe we are of the same grade. This is my Shugo Chara Kiseki." It was the Prince. He had short blond hair with red-violet eyes. The King's Chair was wearing the standard boy's uniform and had the blue Guardian's cape to finish it off. Beside him was a smaller version of himself except said version had a crown on his head. They were almost the same, although the tiny figure had an air of arrogance around him.

"I'm the Guardians' Queen's Chair, Fujisaki Nadeshiko. I'm in the same grade as you as well and this is Temari." The elegant girl had waist length, indigo hair that was in a high ponytail, tied by a thin red string with Sakura flowers at the end and light brown eyes. She wore the expected female uniform with a red cape on top. Floating above her shoulder was an exact replica of the rather tall girl, but instead of a string, Sakura clips held her hair in place.

"I'm the Guardians' Jack's Chair, Souma Kukai. I'm in the soccer club. He's Daichi." A boy with brown hair and green eyes, a few shades darker than Sakura's, was grinning mischievously at them. Sakura noted that he had both of his ears pierced. The soccer player was probably the eldest, judging by _height._ Personality-wise, he seemed like one of the youngest there. His thumb was pointing over at a Chara that had aqua green hair and hazelnut brown eyes. A yellow star was prominent against the white band he was wearing around his head.

"I'm the Ace's Chair, Yuiki Yaya! I'm a fourth year and I love cute things! This is Pepe-chan. Nice to meetcha!" This girl looked very childish and her Chara did nothing to prove this statement wrong. Orange hair, with a tinge of brown, was tied up in identical pigtails, held by two big, red ribbons at either side of her head. Expressive, big, brown eyes looked over at the two with poorly hidden excitement. A small baby, a tad bigger than a fist, was leaning slightly against the girl's cheek. It was in a light pink baby outfit with matching bunny ears. She also had a white bib and a white hat on to match. Her blue eyes sparkled innocently as it sucked on the yellow pacifier in her mouth.

"U-umm… I'm—"

"That's alright, Hinamori-san. We already know who you two are." Nadeshiko offered them a gentle smile and some more of her scones. Amu looked relieved, although the pinkette beside her tensed up. Her light green eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion and her posture became a tad rigid, although you wouldn't notice it until you touched her back.

"Really? And how do you know us?" There was a smile on her face, but she was feeling anything but happy. She felt as if she was exposed, vulnerable, to everyone around her. After all, these people knew things about her that other people don't, and she didn't know a thing about them. She made a mental note to do a background check on them later, maybe after training.

"We have control over all of the students' personal information because we're the Guardians." The dark haired girl smiled knowingly over at Sakura and she felt… What was the word for it?

"That's a violation of privacy!" Ahhh, yes. Violated. She felt violated. Leave it to Amu to voice her thoughts.

"And you're Shugo Charas, Ran and Miki." Both Charas looked over at the Queen's Chair curiously as she called out their names.

"And of course, Haruno-san's Shugo Charas, Taiga, Rai and Kaori." Sakura felt a push on her satchel. She put her hand away and her three Charas floated into view, each one swelling with pride at the mention of their names. Well… with the exception of Kaori who had an aura of superiority.

"Shugo… Chara? What are they?" The Prince held out a book towards the puzzled pinkette. Amu took it and her eyebrows knit together showing her obvious confusion as to what she was going to do next.

"Read it." Sakura snickered in amusement as her friend flushed with embarrassment and started to read.

"Every child has eggs inside their heart…" As Amu began reading, Sakura spaced out, having already read the book before when Tsunade had found out that she had Charas. Her mind began to wander to how she was even able to befriend the famous "Cool and Spicy" Hinamori Amu.

~FLASHBACK~

_Haruno Sakura was nervous. No. She was beyond nervous. She was freaking out._

"_Kura-chan, relax. It's gonna be over before you know it." Her Charas were trying their best to cheer her up as she stood in front of the class beside another pink haired kid. As she chanced a glance at the tough looking girl, she noticed that she too was anxious about this. The girl was just as nervous as she was, except she was hiding it better. _

"_It's alright. We'll get through this together, okay? Here, I'll go first." She gave the shaking girl a reassuring smile and turned to face the class. She shot her blonde haired Chara a pleading look and the floating girl smiled back and gave her a wink. _

"_Chara Change!" A ribbon replaced the usual Leaf symbol on her headband and a confident grin rose up to her face._

"_Yo! I'm Haruno Sakura! Nice to meet you!" She finished it off with a wink and stepped back slightly to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the anxious girl. Now that she was touching her, she felt the taller pinkette shaking slightly, although her mask did not waver._

"_I'm Hinamori Amu." The small girl felt more pressure on her side and she looked over at the girl, who wasn't shaking anymore, and found that she had stepped a little closer to her. Screams and squeals filled the classroom and both transfer students had to suppress the urge to cover their ears._

"_Cute and Spunky!"_

"_Cool and Spicy!"_

~FLASHBACK~

"-right Sakura-chan?"

Said girl's head snapped up when her name was mentioned and she looked around to see everyone staring at her weirdly. The question then registered into the befuddled girl's mind and she came up with the most literate answer she could think of.

"Huh?"

Her friend let out a defeated sigh and looked exasperatedly at her as if willing Sakura to take her side.

"I said that we wouldn't join the Guardians because of their stupid capes." The taller of the two crossed her arms over her chest and looked to the side to hide her obvious blush.

"Hinamori-san, what's so bad about it?" The Prince stared at Amu with such intensity that Sakura swore she could feel his sparkles hit her head.

"I-I-I'm sorry!" Viridian eyes watched in amusement as her fellow pinkette ran away with a very red face.

"How about you, Haruno?" Her eyes looked straight into the Jack's Chair and waved him away.

"Don't waste your time asking me. Ask Amu-chan. She'll be harder to convince." The shorter girl waved her hand in a dismissive manner and proceeded towards the door. She could practically feel their grins from the place she was standing.

'_This'll be an interesting year.'_

* * *

><p>A shirt, with some rips, littered the white floor. Minimal spots of red could be seen tainting the bright orange shirt near the tears. A little ways away from the mess, there stood Haruno Sakura clad in nothing but a sarashi and black biker shorts. Her hair was tied up into a messy bun and she was dirty, bloody and beaten.<p>

"Kura-chan, you should take it easy."

"Yeah. You should go ahead and rest."

"You shouldn't have pushed yourself."

"I'm fine guys. Just go back to sleep, alright?" And with that, she was alone once more.

They had had their monthly sparring earlier that evening and Sakura had been beaten. Sakura was good in Martial Arts, yes. That much was obvious. Better than any other female her age. But put up against Naruto and Sasuke, her technique needed a bit more work.

Her and her team had been training since they were merely five or six years old. Sasuke's brother, who had been about nine that time, was a prodigy in Martial Arts. He had served as an inspiration to the three children and got them to start training to be one of the best in their village.

Sasuke of course, being from the Uchiha clan, was a natural.

Naruto, whose dad was one of the strongest warriors of the village, was also pretty good at it. His hard work made Sakura strive harder in order to be in the same level as them.

Sakura however, had no family member to ever be interested in the art. Thus, she was the weakest of the group. The one that had always needed protecting. She was a fast learner, but she wasn't a natural. She had always been over-shadowed by her teammates, and picked on by others.

~FLASHBACK~

"_Look at it! Her forehead's huge!" _

"_Why does Sasuke-kun even waste his time around her?"_

"_She has no right to hang out with Naruto-san and Sasuke-kun!"_

"_She's so _weak._"_

"_Shut up! You guys are a bunch of freaks! Stop looking at others and look at your own reflection! Stop picking on someone just because you're jealous!"_

_Annoyed sighs. Footsteps walking away. Good. She was safe now._

"_Are you alright?" A hand came in contact with her head and the five year old flinched away from it, thinking that it would hurt her._

"_It's alright. I made the bullies go away. I'm Yamanaka Ino!" The tiny girl looked up and she saw the brightest blue she has ever seen in her life. They were bluer than the sky. Bluer than the sea. Bluer than a crayon._

"_I-I-I'm Haruno S-Sakura." Tiny hands wiped the tears running down the scared girl's cheeks, then proceeded to comb her hair back._

"_You know… you shouldn't listen to them. They're nothing but bullies. You're forehead looks fine!" The blonde girl tied something to keep her hair up and away from her forehead. The green eyed girl blinked and noted that it was a red ribbon. _

"_Don't take it off, okay? Be proud of your forehead, Sakura-chan! I believe that you're one of the strongest people I've met in the whole entire world! Let's be friends, mmkay?" Hands reached out to hold the ones that were idly sitting on her lap as she stared at the girl in admiration. Ino helped her up and together, they walked towards a flower shop._

"_Promise me that you'll never listen to those meanies ever again." _

"_I-I promi—"_

"_Oh, oh! And that we'd be best friends forever." The blonde girl stopped in her tracks and turned to face the tinier girl with her pinky outstretched._

_The pink haired girl grabbed Ino's pinky with her own and gave her a breathtaking smile. _

"_I promise!" _

~FLASHBACK~

Sakura chuckled lightly at the memory, but soon regretted it as she winced and held her rib. Sasuke had broken it during their spar.

"Ino-pig… You better not forget to write to me!" Despite the pain, she smiled brightly at the thought of her best friend.

The pinkette sighed and walked towards a mirror to assess her injuries.

She had two broken ribs, both of which were on the right, and a sprained wrist, which was her left. She had a deep gash that was still bleeding quite steadily under her right eye, and several cuts on her arms and legs. Her knuckles were slightly bloody and she was proud to say that not all of it was hers. Some were her teammates'.

'_It could've been worse. I'm actually getting better now.' _She smiled, although it looked more like a wince, and stalked off to the bathroom to clean up and bandage her injuries before heading off towards Tsunade's apartment.


	3. Irritation is Annoying

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Shugo Chara. SOBS.**

**Chapter Three: Irritation Is Annoying**

"-And I just dodged his punch-"

Today would be the end of their fourth year in elementary. This April, they'd come back to school as fifth years.

"-Blocked his kick-"

Ahh, yes… One year closer to middle school. That means that they'd finally be in the same school.

"-and I was so cool—" Uzumaki Naruto stopped in the middle of his story as a certain pink haired girl hit him on the head.

"I _know_, Naruto. I was _there._"

Both students were currently walking to school with multiple bandages on different parts of their bodies, many of which were currently hidden under their uniforms.

"I know, Sakura-chan. I was just _reminding_ you of what happened. In case you forget, you know?"

* * *

><p>As Haruno Sakura entered the classroom, with her Charas floating around her, many curious eyes landed on her and whispers erupted.<p>

Her Charas, being ever so supportive, flew over to Amu's Charas and they started to play and laugh and just have fun.

"Sakura-chan! What happened to your cheek?"

"How about your hands?"

"Are you alright, Sakura-chan?"

"Did you get into a fight?"

_SLAM!_

Everyone froze as the center of attention was plucked from the middle of a huge crowd, which formed in a matter of seconds, and was unceremoniously dropped into a chair which earned a wince from the doll that was Haruno Sakura.

"Sakura-chan, what happened?" Hinamori Amu was pissed. And her facial expression did not say otherwise.

"Sparring. What happened to you?" She whispered the first part, as to not draw attention to the fact that she knew Martial Arts, and her voice gradually got louder as she took in her friend's menacing aura.

The students were talking amongst themselves now, not paying attention to the two pinkettes. Rumors would spread before first period even ended, they were both sure of it.

"The Queen's Chair tried to recruit me. She said that they already had you in the bag. Lies!" The taller of the two huffed in annoyance and turned away, favoring to look out the window instead.

"That's kind of true. I would join, but only if you were in it too." Her face broke into a huge grin as she swung her arm around her friend.

"Hm. Whatever." A microscopic smile could be seen on Amu's face as she rolled her eyes at Sakura's silliness.

* * *

><p>The sun was still up and people were still running around the halls, trying to cram as much books as possible into their bags. Elementary was brutal. Especially on break.<p>

A lone pinkette was strolling lazily around the school, greeting people here and there, and finally stopping in front of a soccer field. She hadn't played much since she moved. She used to play with Inuzuka Kiba and Naruto, but she never got the chance to play ever since she moved. She couldn't play with Naruto since he was in a different school. Kiba was definitely out of the question since he was in a different part of Japan.

Weirdly enough, no one seemed to be out on the field. Everyone must've been inside the school or out with friends. It was the start of Spring Break after all.

Sakura scanned the area and spotted a soccer ball not too far away from her. She picked it up and walked over to the middle of the field. She closed her eyes and let herself recall the times she played with her friends. Even Ino would play once in a while, although it would take a lot of begging.

The petite girl took a deep breath and stepped away from the ball. Eyes snapped open to reveal viridian oculars, burning with confidence and determination. She stopped a couple of feet away from it, then took off running. She kicked the ball hard, with the inside of her foot, and it went soaring straight into the goal, stopping when it hit the net behind it.

She hid a wince behind a smile and one of her hands held her ribs. The injury was still pretty new, considering that she only broke them last night.

"And the crowd goes wild!" Taiga circled around her head, screaming and howling, obviously enjoying the familiar environment.

"This is where training comes in handy." Kaori was smirking at her owner and resting on her owner's head.

"Kiba would've loved to see that shot!" Rai giggled at the thought of the dog-loving brunette.

"Yeah. See only though, but never score." A chuckle escaped her lips as she remembered the first time she had shot the ball past him. He was gaping at her like a fish out of water.

~FLASHBACK~

"_I doubt a girl, with _pink_ hair no less, would be able to shoot anything past me!" An arrogant, seven year-old, brunette proclaimed as he stood lazily in front of the goal._

"_Wanna bet?" A tiny girl, who looked younger than she actually is, smiled innocently at him._

"_Yeah! Bring it on!" _

_The girl kicked the ball and it flew right over his shoulder._

_The boy stood there, both eyes and mouth wide with shock, arms limp at his side and looking like a total idiot._

"_T-Two out three!" _

~FLASHBACK~

"Oi! Haruno!"

Sakura blinked and turned around, only to come face-to-chest with someone she knew as the Jack's Chair. She took a step back and tilted her head slightly to look up at him.

"You called?" She threw a glance over her shoulder and saw her Charas playing with Daichi, the boy's Shugo Chara.

"Never knew you could play soccer." He raised a brow at her and nodded his head in the direction of the goal.

"Really? I would've thought that you would. I mean… you did look through my personal file…" A sarcastic look took over the pinkette's face. Her hands were on her hips and she was looking pointedly at the Guardian.

"Hey! It's one of our privileges to look through them!"

"Doesn't mean you have to."

"Yeah, but-"

"Save it, Souma-san. I have more important things to do than argue about your 'privileges.'"

And with that, the small girl turned and walked away, left hand discreetly supporting her ribs.

The soccer player lashed out and tugged the younger girl's wrist, resulting in her stumbling and almost crashing into the brunette's chest.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?"

"Whatever, Souma. What's done is done."

She turned around and started towards the gate, not entirely sure why the Jack's Chair would even care.

Unbeknownst to them, a lone figure with indigo eyes had witnessed both the goal and the interaction between the two.

* * *

><p><em>SLAM!<em>

Haruno Sakura fell to the floor, panting and gasping.

Seven hours had passed and she was still training.

"Kura-chan, I really don't think you should be doing this." The blonde Chara tried her best to pull up her owner.

"I agree. You should rest. It's been a hundred hours already!" A brunette Chara held out a bottle of water for the girl to take.

"Sakura-chan, it would be wise to stop. You're injury is fairly new and it would take a longer time for it to heal if you keep training like this."

The pinkette's head snapped up and stared at her Charas. She pushed them away and shakily stood up.

"I'm fine guys. I'll never catch up to Naruto and Sasuke if I don't train hard." The fatigued girl nodded in thanks as she took big gulps of water from the bottle that Taiga was holding out to her.

"If you keep training like this, you'll get sick. If you get sick, you'll be put out from training even more. And your ribs are probably in worse condition after all that activity." Icy blue eyes scanned the Chara bearer's stomach and found that there were some red dots on the bandages wrapped around her owner's torso.

When Sakura went to Tsunade's apartment the night before, they had found out that the rib had punctured her skin and made a deep cut on the right side of her abdomen.

Sakura contemplated the pros and cons of training a little more and found that the outcome would be negative. She nodded and grabbed her bag, which was resting near a tree, and began walking back towards her apartment.

_Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyaaaan Nyan Nya-_

"Hello?"

"_Sakura-chan! Where are you? Don't tell me you're still out training!" _The loud voice boomed from her cellphone and the exhausted girl winced as she put the device at a safe distance from her ear.

"I just finished training. I'm walking back to my apartment now, why?"

"_We were just wondering—Ow! Teme! Fine! - _I _was just wondering if you wanted to go eat ramen with us."_

"I'll see what I can do."

"_Okay, Sakura-chan! See you!" _

The pinkette snapped her phone shut and put it back in her pocket. She slowly walked back to her apartment and checked the time. It was two o'clock in the afternoon. Oh joy. She had been training so hard that she missed lunch. Poopy.

_Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyaaaan Nyan Nyan Nyaaa-_

"Naruto, you better have a g—"

"_Sakura-chan! I need your help!" _

The girl froze in mid-sentence and her expression suddenly became serious.

"What is it, Amu-chan?"

* * *

><p>"Who's there? Eh, Hinamori-san? Haruno-san?"<p>

Hinamori Amu and Haruno Sakura were currently intruding in the Hotori household. More importantly, they were intruding Hotori _Tadase_'s room.

The smaller pinkette was currently sleeping on the bed of the victim, while the other one was hovering above said victim's Chara.

When the two had first gotten here, Sakura immediately face planted onto the enticing mattress, claiming that this was a stupid reason to pester her and that the bed was "calling her name."

She then proceeded to space out, which led to her state now.

"What happened to—"

"Ne-Never mind that. Let's just talk outside. We might wake her."

* * *

><p>The faint sound of shuffling feet, together with the feeling that someone was hovering over her, caused viridian eyes to snap open and stare straight into the Jack's Chair.<p>

A wave of panic went through the pinkette as her muscles tensed, as if anticipating a fight. And then, she relaxed and a calm mask swept over her face.

Kaori had just Chara Changed with her.

"Why are you so close to my face?" she said, as if she were actually curious rather than suspicious.

The Jack pulled back and broke out into a grin.

"Geez! You sleep like a bear!"

Sakura rolled her eyes at the older boy and heard him sigh in return.

"Look, I'm really sorry if we offended you. I didn't know that you would be this affected by it. I mean, if it makes you feel any better, we just read through your grades and personality growth."

And weirdly enough, it did make her feel better. She felt as if a big load was just lifted off her chest. Good. So they didn't know. A sigh of relief escaped her lips.

The younger girl finally took the time to survey the room. They were the only ones here, although she could hear the telltale sounds of Yaya's loud whining, though they were distant.

The girl got up and clutched her ribs as she staggered slightly, before standing straight. No. She would not show weakness here. Not when she was outnumbered; when she was so painfully vulnerable.

Sakura grinned at the Guardian before walking out the door, arm-in-arm with the older boy, to greet the others and alert them of her no-longer dead state.

* * *

><p>As Haruno Sakura was walking home, she felt as if she was being watched.<p>

She discreetly threw a cautious look over her shoulder and found that no one was walking behind her.

'_Strange.'_

It was half past five and the sun was still up, burning menacingly over her head. The streets were deserted and the shops were closed.

This was, indeed, very strange.

She picked up her pace and listened for any sounds indicating that she was being followed.

She heard the light rustle of leaves and soft footsteps a few meters away from her. She stopped abruptly and turned around, paranoia slowly eating at her insides.

"Can you stop following me?" With her heart pounding in her ears, mind racing with hundreds of thoughts, Sakura realized that she recognized the man standing before her.

But of course, how could she forget the face that haunted her every night when she was seven years old?

"Sakura-hime." The man reached out to her and she flinched away, taking an automatic step behind her.

"Don't you dare touch me."

"Ahhh… Quite the feisty little girl now, aren't we?"

She was prepared to fight. Even without her Shugo Charas, she could accurately throw punches and land kicks. She was trained in Martial Arts after all.

"Shut up. Leave me alone."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, hime-sama. You see, you could be very valuable in our search for the Embryo." He tried reaching out to her again, but to no avail.

She turned around and walked briskly towards her apartment. The man did not protest, nor did he make a move to stop her. He just stood there, a vile smirk playing at his lips. His slanted eyes watching the blossom walk away.

Sakura did not dare turn back to look at Orochimaru.

* * *

><p>The first thing Sakura noticed when she got to her apartment was that there was a stranger on her couch.<p>

She took out her kunai and threw it towards him. He dodged it skillfully and lunged at her, successfully pinning her against the wall. She held back a wince as her back painfully collided with the wall, sending jolts of pain towards her injured ribs.

"Woah… Relax, Pinky."

Her temper flared out and she kicked the intruder's shin _hard._

He let go of her wrists and held onto his shin, trying to balance himself on one foot. Sakura kicked that foot and he toppled towards the floor, pulling her with him.

She took another kunai out of her holster and poised it against his neck, applying just enough pressure to make the stranger bleed if he was dumb enough to move.

"Who are you?" She was lying on top of him, looking at the boy with a sneer.

"Tsukiyomi Ikuto."

"You're the cat thief." She remembered him now. He was the one who had tried to steal away Amu's eggs and hurt them. Something bubbled inside her as she got off of him, her kunai now pointed as his chest. She resisted the urge to hold her ribs, seeing as there was a possible threat right in front of her.

"If that's what you prefer, fine. You must be one of the Kiddie King's admirers."

She snorted at his statement, her green eyes watching as he stood up and put his hands above his head.

"I think you've mistaken me for Amu-chan. She's the one that's overly obsessed with Hotori."

"You can put down the kunai. I'm not here to hurt you."

She didn't budge.

"Then why _are_ you here?"

"Because I want to be."

The petite girl narrowed her eyes in suspicion before lowering down her weapon. When he didn't make a move to attack her, she put it back in her holster and walked over to the couch to retrieve the other one.

She flopped down onto the couch and immediately regretted it. She discreetly clutched her ribs as she felt the sofa dip under her. Sakura looked to her right and found the older boy making himself comfortable.

"Aren't you going to leave?" Her voice sounded tired, as if she all the energy she had a while ago was sucked out of her the minute she landed on the sofa.

"Not really."

"Just go. You're invading my personal space."

"Oh really? That's not what you told the Souma-brat when he was standing so close to you."

Sakura froze in her position and gave the taller boy an incredulous look.

"What are you talking about?"

"After school, in the soccer field."

Oh. _Right…_

"That's none of your business." She recalled being very close to him indeed, but for some reason, she didn't move away. Why? It was probably because of her Chara Change with Kaori.

Yeah… That was it.

"Tch."

Sakura got up from the couch and made her way towards her room. She sent Ikuto a cold look, her hand lying against the cool metal of her doorknob.

"Whatever. Just lock the door when you leave." She turned the knob and shut the door loudly once she was inside.

She plopped down on her bed and kicked off her shoes, before curling up and throwing her covers over herself.

She quickly drifted to sleep, dreaming of a certain girly, blue eyed blonde and a certain sporty, dog-loving brunette.


	4. Jester Tales

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Shugo Chara. I CAN'T EVEN.**

**Chapter Four: Jester Tales**

_She was running and running, as fast as her seven year old legs can take her, away from the monster._

_Her mother had warned her about this._

_Her father had told her to stay away._

_And yet, she found herself doing just the opposite._

_Curiosity had been eating at her ever since she heard about the rumors of a snake man out in the forest. _

_She had finished her training early that day, so she decided to check out the old cabin in the heart of the forest._

_She found a stark white man with long black hair reaching his hips, his yellow eyes slanted in an eerie way._

_He looked just like a snake._

_She then screamed and took off, weaving in and out of trees and jumping over roots._

_She could see the gate now. _

_The gate that would lead her to her parents, to Ino-chan, Naruto-kun, and Sasuke-kun. _

_The gate that lead to her safety._

_But a hand tugged her back. _

_And she was dragged back into the cabin._

_The man was working on her, mumbling something about an egg. _

_He had her hooked up to a machine that monitored her heartbeat. _

_Multiple needles were stuck into her skin and tears were streaming down her cheeks._

_She was screaming for her mum and for her dad, while he just laughed at her in a sadistic manner._

_After what seemed like days, the door burst open and she was staring at the enraged faces of her team._

"_Sakura-chan!"_

_She wanted to run to them, to hug them, but she couldn't. _

_She was too weak._

_All of the energy had been drained from her body._

_The last thing she saw before blacking out was Naruto running towards her._

Haruno Sakura jolted up from her bed, pink hair plastered to her face and drenched in sweat. Her breathing was uneven and her vibrant eyes were dilated in fear.

She looked around the dark room and her heart was pounding loudly in her ears as she went back to that horribly dreadful day.

The pinkette whimpered in fear and she blindly made her way to the door. She opened it and was sad to find that her apartment was deserted, save for her.

Ikuto must've left already.

Sakura walked out of her apartment and went towards a unit that was about five doors away from her. She hesitantly knocked on the wood, her eyes darting around the hallway as she listened for any footsteps.

The door opened after a few moments revealing a drowsy blonde with a sleeping cap on his head. He was rubbing his eyes sleepily and looking rather disoriented yet annoyed. It was, after all, the day before school started again.

The smaller girl ran to him, circling her tiny arms around the tall boy's waist. Sakura buried her face into his chest as she felt her tears flood down her cheeks.

Naruto stood frozen in shock for a few seconds before engulfing the girl in a hug and carrying her into his apartment. The blonde gently laid her down onto his bed and listened to her sobs.

He whispered comforting things into her ear and, slowly, Sakura drifted back to sleep. Naruto wiped away her tears and just held her like that. He hated it when she cried. He knew why she was crying. He was so used to her running to him in the middle of the night because she was scared. She would climb into his room through his window and just cry and cry.

A few weeks ago, Sakura had told the blonde that she saw _him_ again. She looked scared and shaken by this fact.

He never thought of her as weak though. She was quite the opposite, even though others would think differently. He understood why she would be so scared; so frightened.

That disgusting, despicable man had done this to her.

Naruto swore that he would pay for what he did. For scarring and tainting their innocent blossom by hurting her and experimenting on her.

With that thought, the blonde sent a text to their other teammate and drifted off to sleep.

He didn't lock the door though. He knew that Sasuke would come any minute now and sleep beside them, because the raven haired boy cared about Sakura, even if he didn't show it as much as Naruto did.

* * *

><p>Haruno Sakura sat in the assembly with a smile on her face. It lit her face up and her eyes were shining with happiness.<p>

When she woke up, she felt unbearably warm. And she soon found out that it was because she was squished in between her two teammates on what was undeniably Naruto's bed.

They also walked her to school, telling her that they'd pick her up afterwards and head off to buy ramen and dango.

How can she not be happy after that?

And to top it all off, her and Hinamori Amu were in the same class again.

Yes… Life was good.

"—and now, I will introduce this year's Guardian members. The King's Chair: Hotori Tadase. The Queen's Chair: Fujisaki Nadeshiko. The Jack's Chair: Souma Kukai. The Ace's Chair: Yuiki Yaya."

Loud cheers filled the auditorium as the Guardians were introduced. Comments were said here and there, indicating their obvious delight at finding out that the Guardians were still the same.

"And this year, there are two more… The Joker: Hinamori Amu!" Sakura's head snapped to her left to gauge the reaction of her friend. She looked outraged and shocked and her face was as red as a tomato.

Sakura then burst into a round of snickers at the taller girl's misfortune.

This day just keeps getting better and better.

"The Jester: Haruno Sakura!"

Her laughter abruptly stopped as she heard her name leave the announcer's mouth and echo through the room.

'_Dammit!' _

The whole school turned to look at the two pinkettes and Sakura suddenly felt very self-conscious of herself.

"Rai, a little help here!"

"You got it! Chara Change!" squealed her blonde Chara.

A ribbon suddenly appeared on her Leaf headband that was tied around her arm and an air of confidence surrounded the fifth year student.

Sakura pulled Amu's sleeve and steered her towards the stage where her other fellow Guardians watched. She stopped in the middle of the stage and faced the audience, her confidence level not faltering.

A breathtaking smile made its way to her lips and she put her hands on her hips in an authoritative manner.

"Yo! I'm your new Jester and Amu is your new Joker. Please be nice to us!"

Shouts and hoots came from the student body and Sakura felt pleased with the outcome. She glanced at the Guardians and gave them all a wink, not noticing the way the eldest member turn a light shade of pink.

* * *

><p>"You told them that we joined the Guardians! And how'd we become the Joker and the Jester?"<p>

Haruno Sakura watched in amusement as Amu ranted on and on about how she didn't want to be part of this and how she hadn't agreed to this.

She reached across the table for a brownie and munched on it happily as her friend paced around the table.

"Don't you know what they are? They're the trump cards. You guys have three eggs. It's unreal, but an advantage. And Haruno said that she'd be part!"

"Don't you dare bring me into this, Souma." Sakura's eye twitched slightly as she grabbed another brownie and slowly nibbled on it.

The Queen's Chair then began to explain about why the two were chosen and Yaya and Kukai held up identical capes.

"Especially made for Amu-chi and Saku-chi!" Yaya said while holding out the two capes out towards them.

"There is absolutely _no way_ I am putting that on." Amu crossed her arms over her chest with a defiant look on her face.

"You don't have to wear it. It's just for formality. So Hinamori-san, let's do our best this year, okay?" The King's Chair smiled softly at Amu.

"P-Prince…" Sakura felt as if she was going to barf from the cliché-ness of it all.

"Prince? Don't call me a _PRINCE!_" Tadase flipped over the table, a crown suddenly appearing on his head.

"E-E-Eh?" Sakura watched in amusement as Amu looked bewildered at her Prince's sudden attitude.

"You! Commoner!" The Prince pointed towards Kukai and Sakura suddenly had the urge to laugh loudly. Instead, she settled for snickering loudly, which earned her a glare from said commoner.

"I am not merely a prince! I am a _KING!_ I will find the Embryo and conquer the world!"

* * *

><p>"Hey, come on, Tadase. It's fine, come here already."<p>

The Guardians were currently beckoning to their King, each one trying a different tactic.

Haruno Sakura however, was lounging around, munching once more on the brownies that Nadeshiko had baked.

_Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyan Nyaaaan Nyan Ny—_

"Hello?"

"_Sakura-chan! Where are you? We're outside the gate!" _Sakura, being used to Naruto's usual antics held the phone a few inches away from her ear.

"Okay, okay. Geez, Naruto. No need to shout!" She shut the device with an annoyed huff and stood up from her chair.

"As fun as this was, I need to go." Sakura grabbed a brownie and shoved it into her mouth before walking towards the door, satchel in hand.

"Eh? Where are you going Saku-chi?"

The pinkette turned around and found that all the Guardians were looking at her, even Tadase, who was sulking off in the corner.

"I'm going out with my friends. See you guys tomorrow!" And with that, the new Jester ran out the Royal Garden with a big smile on her face.

* * *

><p>Sakura waved at Naruto as she watched him disappear into his apartment. The pinkette then turned towards her door and opened it.<p>

She wasn't the least bit surprised when she found a high schooler lazying around on her couch.

"Haruno."

"Tsukiyomi."

She made her way towards her room and dropped all her things there, face planting onto her bed.

Sakura felt a tug at her hair and she looked up to find Rai holding out a letter. She felt excitement fill her heart as she reached for the envelope and sat Indian style on her bed.

"It's from Ino-chan!" Rai was hovering over her shoulder, excitement also apparent on her face.

Sakura opened the envelope and unfolded the letter inside it, unaware that Ikuto had just entered her room, curiously staring at the letter in her hand.

_Dear Forehead, _

_It's been years since I've seen you! Haha! I know I'm exaggerating a bit, but still! _

_Konoha has been miserable without you, as much as I hate to admit it. You better not be doing anything to Sasuke-kun! With Naruto, it's fine. Just don't you dare touch Sasuke-kun! _

_Guess what! Sai's been getting friendly with me. I think he likes me! Have you met any hot boys there lately? You better tell me Forehead!_

_Kiba's been asking for you. He misses you. HAHAHA! I feel a relationship starting to form! _

_Love, _

_Ino-pig_

Sakura chuckled fondly at the letter and smiled widely. Ino misses her. She really misses her.

"Who's Sasuke? And Naruto? And Kiba?"

The smaller girl jumped when she heard the voice and turned to look around her room.

Ikuto was hovering above her, indigo eyes scanning what was written on her letter. She folded the piece of paper quickly and put it back inside the envelope before getting a blank sheet of paper and a pen.

She would send this by tomorrow so that Ino could get it in a few days.

"You still haven't answered my question."

A frustrated sigh escaped the pinkette's lips as she turned to face the irritating cat Chara bearer. Annoyance bubbled inside her as she found him lying snuggly on her bed, spread out as if he owned the place.

"I don't answer to you."

She turned around and began writing her letter.

_Dear Ino-pig,_

_Yeah! It's been _years_ since we've seen each other. Only, not really._

_I've been miserable without Konoha. I really miss you guys! And I'm not doing anything with the both of them! Why should you care anyways? Don't you like Sai? _

_I bet you're jealous that I get to be with Sasuke. We went out for ramen earlier. With Naruto, of course. _

_No I haven't met any hot boys lately. But I have met this one guy who plays soccer really well. I think he could rival Kiba. So tell him to watch out!_

_Tell "Ki-chan" that I miss him too. We're just friends Ino-pig!_

_Love, _

_Forehead_

"Oh? What's this? Could it be that the little girl has a little crush on the Souma-brat? Or is it this "Kiba" person?" Ikuto was once again hovering over Sakura's shoulder and reading what she had written down.

"Bug-off Tsukiyomi." Sakura folded her letter and put it in an envelope similar to the one she had gotten. She left it on her desk and scribbled a note stating to deliver this to the post office tomorrow.

"Why didn't you tell her that you met me?"

"Why would I?"

"Because she was asking if you met any hot guys lately."

"Well aren't you full of yourself." Sakura let out a snort and pushed him out of the room.

"Hey! What are you doing, little one?"

"Pushing you out of my room?"

"Why?"

"I'm gonna go to bed now."

"So? Can't I just stay in the room with you?"

"Hell no!"

* * *

><p>"Alright! I'm in-charge of teaching you guys what you need to do!"<p>

Haruno Sakura was currently standing outside the Royal Garden together with Amu and the Jack's Chair.

Apparently being the Jester meant that Sakura needed to protect Amu, the Joker, from any harm in order to protect the Humpty Lock. They both had to hunt for X Eggs and seal them. They also had to find X Characters and capture them.

As they started to run, Kukai explained more about X Eggs and how they're born.

Sakura stopped abruptly and clutched her chest, the feeling of suffocation suddenly engulfing her like smoke.

"Sakura-chan?"

The pinkette looked up and noticed that both the Joker and the Jack's Chair had stopped running and were now jogging towards her hunched form. She noticed something behind them. It was dark and black and in the middle, was an X Egg. It looked as if it were encircled in the black flames; in the black aura.

'_Gotcha.' _

"Taiga!"

Sakura held out her hands and twisted them in front of her heart.

"Ore no Kokoro: Unlock!"

Taiga put a hand on her hip while her other one was outstretched and doing a thumbs-up. She was then enclosed in her egg and melted into Sakura's chest.

Sakura was suddenly surrounded by orange light. They were covering her whole form, from head to toe, blinding both of the Guardians that were watching her. The pinkette then flicked her wrists and the sparkles died out from her hands revealing bright, yellow, fingerless gloves. She snapped her right fingers outwards and the light flew away, leaving an orange shirt in its place that had a yellow lightning bolt in the middle. She snapped her left fingers and moved her hand outwards to form mid-thigh black shorts. Her arms made an X across her waist as she snapped and two black belts appeared on top of her shirt, copying the formation of her arms.

The Jester jumped while kicking her legs out in mid-air and knee-high rainbow socks were seen through an explosion of orange sparkles. She stomped her feet and brown, ankle-high, combat boots formed as the last of the sparkles fell away.

She untied her Leaf headband from her arm and tied it quickly to her forehead, the Leaf symbol turning into a lightning bolt. Her mid-back hair was tied into a messy bun so it wouldn't get in her way.

"Chara Nari: Raging Blossom!" Sakura shouted as she snapped her fingers then made a thumbs-up sign and winked.

"Haruno?" asked a disbelieving Kukai.

"Sakura-chan!" Amu looked at her in shock.

"The X Egg is getting away."

And with that simple statement, the two stunned Guardians turned to find an X Egg not too far away from them, they both Chara Changed, and Amu ended up doing a Chara Nari with Ran.

"Chara Nari: Amulet Heart!"

Sakura zeroed-in on the X Egg and ran towards it.

"Chain of Sparks!" Bright yellow nunchucks appeared in her hands and she slashed them at the egg. Yellow sparks flew out of the ends of either nunchuck and hit its target. It went flying towards Kukai and he kicked it hard towards Amu. The pinkette then proceeded to catch the egg with her pompoms.

"There we go! I expected nothing less from the Jester and the Joker!" The Jack's Chair beamed at the two.

"I'm… not all that." Sakura watched as Amu let go of the X Egg and proceeded to fall to the pavement.

"Amu-chan!" Sakura caught Amu just in time, and she felt a stabbing pain at her heart. This was usually what happens to her when she feels dark energy nearby.

"Haruno! Hinamori! Are you guys okay?" Kukai came up behind the Jester and surveyed the Joker.

Amu had turned back to normal already and the X Egg was getting away.

'_Could it be that the dark energy is coming from Amu-chan? Doesn't she believe in herself?' _Sakura helped her fellow pinkette stand up, as Amu staggered from energy loss.

"That's enough for today, I guess. You two should rest up and get better, okay? Training will be harsher tomorrow!" The Jack's Chair waved at them as they made their way towards the gate with Sakura still supporting Amu.

Then, something clicked in Sakura's brain.

"Dammit! I'm late for training!"

* * *

><p>A bloody Haruno Sakura was being supported by a just as bloody Uzumaki Naruto.<p>

Their team had had their monthly sparring again and since Sakura was late, she had the privilege to train while her other teammates were already sparring.

Sakura had been able to land many hits on both Sasuke and Naruto, though the two had landed quite a number on her as well.

"Sakura-chan, I'm really sorry for spraining your ankle!"

"Don't worry about it, Naruto. Sasuke fractured my arm. I, for one, think that his injury hurts more than my stupid ankle. Plus, I broke your nose. Trust me, we're even."

Sakura snickered at the bloodied mess that was her teammate's nose. She immediately regretted it though. The cut that Sasuke had made across Sakura's torso was long and deep, and still bleeding profusely.

'_What is up with him and hitting my tummy? Seriously!' _Sakura then proceeded to cradle her bleeding stomach as Naruto dragged her towards their apartments.

Since Sasuke was the least bloody from the three of them, he had gone ahead to Tsunade's apartment to alert her of their arrival. She hated bandaging them up on such short notice because she hated seeing the blood coming from their new injuries. Her irrational fear of blood rendered her useless when patching up a new wound. Tsunade was a great doctor, one of the best actually, but she just can't stand blood.

And that was why Naruto and Sakura had to clean themselves up before stepping foot into Tsunade's apartment.

Naruto had walked Sakura all the way to her apartment door and left to go to his own. They would meet in the hallway after they had cleaned up and walk to Tsunade's place together since Sakura can't go that far on her own.

As the pinkette staggered into her apartment, she noted that her lights were already turned on and that she could hear the sound of her television.

Ikuto was here.

Dammit.

"Haruno?"

She looked startled that Ikuto had spotted her so quickly. She had just opened the door and yet there he was in all his cat-like glory, standing in front of her with a worried expression on his face.

As if.

"Tsukiyomi."

The Jester pushed past him and limped to her room. She could hear shuffling of feet. Ikuto must've gotten over his initial shock.

"Stop moving, idiot. You're hurt." Sakura felt arms circle around her waist and she felt her feet leave the ground as the older boy picked her up bridal style.

"No shit. Now be a good kitty and bring me to the bathroom." She had no energy left in her to argue with the boy as he carried her into her bathroom.

"Since when were you one to curse?" The high schooler put her down on the toilet and stood near the door.

"Since I got injured. Now, if you don't mind, leave."

"Actually, I do mind."

"Fine. Suit yourself." Sakura started to tug her shirt upwards, leaving her in a sarashi and black biker shorts.

The pinkette sent the older boy a pointed look and he reluctantly left the bathroom, closing the door, to leave her alone.

Sakura shakily stood on her feet, putting less pressure to her left one since it was sprained. Her right arm was fractured and she was lucky enough that it was a closed fracture. She had a diagonal, clean cut across her torso which was about, from what she could see, seven inches long and about two and a half inches deep. She could be wrong of course. She was no doctor yet and the Jester couldn't see clearly through all the blood that was covering her stomach.

She stepped into the bathtub and turned on the shower, letting the cold water wash away the blood and dirt from her body. She didn't change out of her shorts or her sarashi, for fear that she might trip and hurt herself more.

She just stood there, an unmoving figure whose pale skin was full of small cuts and bruises. She could see everything now. Her injuries were so painfully visible now that there was no blood covering them.

The girl stepped out of the bathtub, her pink hair sticking to her face. She grabbed a towel and quickly dabbed herself dry before exiting the bathroom.

"Geez. I thought you died or something." Despite his efforts to lighten up the mood, Ikuto looked tense and concerned as he laid there on Sakura's bed, watching her warily as she picked up a random black shirt with a single red cloud in the middle, and put it over her head. She carefully maneuvered her arm through the hole as to not make the fracture worse.

"Tsukiyomi, I'll be taking my leave. Don't massacre my apartment while I'm gone." Sakura felt a tug on her wrist and her viridian eyes looked up to meet indigo ones.

"Where are you going? And what happened?" The pinkette was surprised to hear a worried tone instead of his usual teasing one that he uses whenever he's with her.

Her eyes softened as she held his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze before completely letting go.

"Don't worry. I'll be back soon. And maybe, I'll tell you. I promise. "

* * *

><p>Haruno Sakura limped sluggishly towards her school beside a half-dead blonde.<p>

They had gotten home at about two o'clock in the morning after having Tsunade bandage their wounds and make sure they wouldn't get infected. Sakura had told Ikuto about how she knows Martial Arts and that her team would spar monthly to gauge their skills and development, and to see how well they are improving.

Ikuto was against it, to say the least. He had told her to quit and had said that training like that was dangerous. He had called her an idiot for thinking that sparring would make her stronger.

~FLASHBACK~

_"That's stupid."_

_Ikuto and Sakura were currently sitting atop the pinkette's mattress, with her head lying comfortably on his lap. This would've looked like such a romantic scene if the both of them were not absorbed in a heated argument about Sakura's training._

_"What? No it's not! Why are you so against it? You can't have a say in this!"_

_The younger girl was outraged. How dare he say that? He can't run her life! It is __hers__ after all!_

_"Just stop training, idiot. It's stupid to continue. You'd just end up getting hurt when you start sparring."_

_"Well obviously! That's why it's called __sparring__ Tsukiyomi! Because you __spar__ with people. And you train to get __better__ so you wouldn't get that injured!"_

"_And since you're heavily injured, you're obviously not faring well. You should just quit." Ikuto was playing with her hair seeing as her head was rested on his lap._

_Did he just call her weak? Indirectly, but it was still hinted. How dare he?_

_Sakura shot out of his lap and turned to glare at the older boy. "Are you calling me weak, Tsukiyomi? Because if you are, then that's only one more reason for me to train harder!" _

_The cat-like boy frowned at both her comment and her actions. He had liked playing with her hair. "No, that's not it, Sakura. I'm just worried about you. If you go home like this monthly, I'd rather you stop training."_

_Sakura's gaze softened and she relaxed into her former position as Ikuto resumed playing with her hair._

"_I'll be fine, Ikuto. I've been training for the past six years and they've been my team for just as long. I doubt they'd let me get killed." The small girl offered him a smile, oblivious to the fact that she had called him by his first name. _

_The teenager managed to smile back at her and dropped the argument. This girl was just too stubborn._

~FLASHBACK~

The two had talked for quite a while after that, with a few more disagreements here and there, and the sun had already risen before the pinkette was able to rest and sleep.

"Sakura-chan, can't we just skip today? We've got valid excuses." Her blonde teammate whined from beside her, motioning and pointing at their obvious injuries.

"Yeah, Kura-chan! We're sleepy!" Rai and Taiga were floating on either side of her, while their sister, being the smart one, slept in her egg that was inside the limping girl's satchel.

"See! Even your Charas agree, Sakura-chan! Just one day! Please?"

'_BONK!'_

"Shut up. And stop whining. All of you."

* * *

><p>A lone pinkette was sitting on her chair, head resting atop her folded arms.<p>

She was resting peacefully until she felt a dark aura surround her senses.

Her head snapped up and she saw dark flames emanating from one of her classmates, a girl at that. She looked discouraged and dismayed as she glared at her friends.

"Lair! It'll definitely change! You'll forget all about me!"

Sakura spotted her friend toppling to the floor as the girl, Hatoba Yuki, pushed past her and out the door.

* * *

><p>Sakura ran, err, limped, towards the dark aura that she felt earlier and stopped in front of a girl with short black hair and an X Character.<p>

"_Do you like English? I HATE English!" _

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Yuki fainted as the X Character surrounded her with the English Alphabet.

"Sakura-chan!" Sakura turned around and looked straight into the eyes of the Queen's Chair and noted that the King's Chair was right beside her. She nodded once and Taiga floated beside her.

"Ore no Kokoro: Unlock!"

Taiga put a hand on her hip while her other one was outstretched and doing a thumbs-up. She was then enclosed in her egg and melted into Sakura's chest.

Sakura was suddenly surrounded by orange light. They were covering her whole form, from head to toe, blinding both the Guardians, and the X Character that were watching her. The pinkette then flicked her wrists and the sparkles died out from her hands revealing bright, yellow, fingerless gloves. She snapped her right fingers outwards and the light flew away, leaving an orange shirt in its place that had a yellow lightning bolt in the middle. She snapped her left fingers and moved her hand outwards to form mid-thigh black shorts. Her arms made an X across her waist as she snapped and two black belts appeared on top of her shirt, copying the formation of her arms.

The Jester jumped while kicking her legs out in mid-air and knee-high rainbow socks were seen through an explosion of orange sparkles. She stomped her feet and brown, ankle-high, combat boots formed as the last of the sparkles fell away.

She untied her Leaf headband from her arm and tied it quickly to her forehead, the Leaf symbol turning into a lightning bolt. Her mid-back hair was tied into a messy bun so it wouldn't get in her way.

"Chara Nari: Raging Blossom!" Sakura shouted as she snapped her fingers then made a thumbs-up sign and winked.

"Chain of Sparks!" Nunchucks appeared in Sakura's hands in an explosion of orange sparks.

"_I like to destroy! English!" _The X Chara sent a wave of letter towards the Guardians and Sakura was able to fend them off, though her reaction was a little slower than usual.

"Chara Nari: Amulet Heart!"

"Amu-chan!" The transformed girl ran to the rest of the Guardians and stood beside Sakura.

'_English is impossible! I don't want to change! I'm scared!' _

Sakura clamped her hands over her ears as her legs buckled under her. The dark aura that Yuki was giving off was overwhelming.

"Don't worry! Negative Heart, Lock on! Open Heart!"

The X broke away from the black figure. It was engulfed in a blinding light and revealed a small stewardess.

Sakura no longer saw nor felt the black flames that had previously surrounded the two. Amu helped her up and supported the fallen pinkette.

"Thank you all so much! I'll be seeing you all very soon!" The Chara floated back into her egg and melted into the unconscious girl's heart.

"H-huh?"

"Hatoba-san, are you stupid? Change… is something good. I was scared to change, but… I guess you could say that it's refreshing." Amu offered their classmate a tiny smile.

"Amu-chan's right, Hatoba-san. No matter where you are, your friends would never stop being your friends." Sakura felt that she said that from her heart. Images of her friends back in Konoha flashed into her mind and a warm smile became visible through Sakura's wince.


	5. Geniuses Aren't Born, They're Made

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Shugo Chara... **

**Chapter Five: Geniuses Aren't Born, They're Made**

"Sakura-chan!"

Haruno Sakura turned around and found Amu and Nadeshiko walking towards her, the former sporting a rather harassed look, while the latter sported one of innocence.

The Jester started to run towards them, but stopped abruptly when she saw the two Guardians looking at her through narrowed eyes.

Her ankle was looking far better than when she had first gotten it. It wasn't swollen anymore, as Tsunade had treated it for her the night before. Her arm was in a completely different condition. It was still as swollen, if not more, as the night she got it. The cut on her abdomen seemed to be healing nicely. It was closed now, and no longer bleeding. She could move, although not as much as she'd like, just in case it opened up again.

"Sakura-chan, we'll go to you. We're in no hurry. You shouldn't overexert yourself." Amu lightly chided her friend.

She had found out about Sakura's injuries after they saved Hatoba Yuki's Heart's Egg. Sakura had to sit through a whole lecture on how irresponsible she was, and how she shouldn't have helped since she had sparred the night before. The rest of the Guardians ended up finding out about her knowledge of Martial Arts because Amu kept shouting about how she should stop training and sparring if she were to end up like this all the time.

Sakura simply waved her off and turned to the Queen's Chair. "What's up?"

"We're off to watch the soccer team's practice. We were wondering if you want to come with us."

Behind Nadeshiko, Amu had on a pleading expression with her hands clamped together and her knees bent slightly. She was mouthing the word "Please" again and again.

The girl chuckled at her friend and thought about it for a while.

"Let's watch, Kura-chan!"

"Yeah! You deserve a break!"

"If my memory serves me right, Souma-san is in the soccer team."

"_Let's goooo!_"

Sakura sweat dropped at her Charas' behaviors.

"I don't think I really have a choice, Nadeshiko-chan. Both my Charas and Amu are begging."

When the Queen's Chair turned to look at Amu, the girl straightened up and pretended to look at something out the window.

Training could wait.

* * *

><p>"<em>KUKAI-SAMA!<em>"

"Seems like someone can't calm themselves." Sakura hid a snicker behind her hand as she surveyed the cheerleaders of the Jack's Chair.

"Are you jealous, Sakura-chan?" The Queen's Chair looked curiously over at the Jester and Amu laughed at the scene before her.

"_Yeah._ I'm _so _jealous." Sakura continued to chuckle as the three girls settled themselves on the grass.

The pinkette was suddenly hit by a wave of nostalgia as she watched the soccer team play on the field.

~FLAHSBACK~

"_Sakura-chan, over here!"_

"_No! Over here, Kura-chan!"_

_Sakura was out on the soccer field playing with her friends. She was on the same team as Kiba, Naruto and Shikamaru, while Neji, Sasuke, Lee and Shino played against them._

_Naruto and Kiba were currently fighting over who Sakura should pass the ball to while Shikamaru looked deep in thought as he weighed their options. _

"_Sakura-chan, pass it to Kiba!"_

_With the decision made, the pinkette skillfully evaded both Neji and Sasuke as she passed the ball expertly towards the awaiting brunette. _

_Kiba then passed it to Naruto who passed it back to Sakura who kicked the ball past Shino._

"_Alright!"_

~END FLASHBACK~

"You used to play soccer back in Konoha, right Sakura-chan?"

The Jester turned her attention to her counter-part and nodded.

"Sakura-chan, you play soccer?" The Queen's Chair looked shocked at this revelation and Sakura had to cover her mouth to stop herself from snickering.

"Yeah. Weird, I know."

A ball caught her attention as it stopped right in front of the three Guardians.

"Oi, Haruno, Hinamori! Pass the ball!"

"E-Eh?" Sakura chuckled as she watched the Joker look flustered over passing the ball.

"Sakura-chan, I think you should help Amu-chan pass the ball." The Queen's Chair giggled along with Sakura as they watched Amu get up from her sitting position.

"H-Here I g-go!"

"Amu-chan, I'll do it." The pinkette lazily stood up from her position and put a hand on Amu's shoulder. Her friend looked relieved as she nodded and took her seat again.

"You could just use your hands, you know."

Sakura stood a few feet away from the ball, and took off running. Her right leg went all the way back before swinging forward full force. Sakura's laces hit the target and the ball went flying straight into the goal on the other side of the field.

The Jester's face broke out into a wide grin as she felt a wave of familiarity wash over. Her ankle wasn't hurting her at the moment, and she wanted to take advantage of it.

This reminded her of the time when she had first met Kiba on the soccer field; when he had gawked at her for getting the ball past him.

"Substitution!" The Jack's Chair pointed straight at her and, if possible, her smile got even wider.

"Prepare to be beaten, Souma!"

Sakura rushed into the field as she dribbled the ball in between her feet. Two players wearing the blue jersey stood in front of her, blocking her path to the goal. One of them tried stealing it from her while the other distracted her.

Sakura kept her eyes trained on the ball as she contemplated which way to go. Her right was blocked, so she went left. The player tripped as he tried to get the ball and Sakura swerved to the right in order to avoid him.

The Jester ran past the rest of the opposing team, not once losing the ball.

"Haruno, you used your Chara Change!" The soccer team captain ran closely behind her, fully intending to steal the ball from the raging pinkette.

"No I didn't! This is pure talent, Souma! Believe it!" Sakura would have chuckled at herself, had she not been playing right now. If Naruto found out that she said that, he'd never let her live it down.

The brunette slid on the floor, trying to kick the soccer ball from under her feet. The girl skillfully dodged him, jumping over the fallen Jack's Chair as if he was nothing but a stone on the grass. She continued on towards the opposing team's goal, a confident smirk playing on her lips.

A sudden, blue blur caught the small girl's attention as Kukai ran right beside her, matching both her speed and determination.

"Are you kidding me?"

Kukai overtook her and Sakura had no choice but to stop. She went left and right with the older boy mirroring her movements.

"Haruno-san, over here!"

"Yamada?"

Sakura found an opening through Kukai's defenses and passed the ball straight to her awaiting teammate. The black haired boy caught it effortlessly as he ran straight for the goal.

"Shoot!"

He pulled his foot back and kicked, but he missed the ball by a few inches and fell to the ground. The goalie punched it upwards, making sure that it wouldn't land anywhere near his goal.

"Saved!"

"It's not over yet, Souma!"

The two jumped towards the ball, the taller of which stopped short, realizing that his head couldn't reach it, while the smaller one continued on and bicycle kicked the ball towards the goal.

"What the heck?"

Sakura expertly landed on the field, accomplishment practically radiating from the smile that the pinkette was giving.

"I caught it!"

Wails of disappointment resounded through the field as the decision was made. Or so they thought.

The Jester raised a brow at the goalie and her smile turned to a smirk.

"You sure?"

The ball in the goalie's hand was still turning at a fast pace as it started to burn him. He abruptly let go and the ball became a red and white blur as it hit the net.

"Sakura-sempai!"

"Alright!" Sakura's fist punched the air, and then proceeded to drop until it was level with Kukai's face, with a finger pointing toward him.

"I beat you, Souma!" The Jester made her way to the Jack and reached up to pinch his cheeks and stretch them. The taller boy just slapped her hands away and patted the shorter girl's head.

"You did good, Haruno."

"Haruno-san!" Sakura turned towards the voice and saw that Yamada was running towards her.

"Nice shot!" The two high-fived and the boy suddenly looked sheepish.

"I need to practice more, I guess."

"Don't be too harsh on yourself, Yamada-san. You did great! Don't get discouraged, 'kay?" The pinkette gave Yamada a thumbs up, not noticing the way his cheeks turned a bit red from the praise he had gotten.

* * *

><p>"We're finally going to have our practice match with Seifu Academy tomorrow."<p>

The soccer team was currently sitting on the soil and listening to their soccer coach.

Sakura on the other hand was sitting on the grass and listening to her friends.

"Sakura-chan, do you know how reckless that was? You could've made your ankle worse! You could've tripped and hurt yourself even more!"

"You did great, but you still shouldn't have played, Sakura-chan."

When Sakura walked back to Amu and Nadeshiko, they both demanded that she pull down her socks immediately so they could check on her ankle. She declined profusely, claiming that she was fine and that her ankle doesn't hurt. Of course, they ignored her and pulled down her knee-high sock anyway and were shocked when they found that her ankle was a tad purple, but it wasn't swollen. They then proceeded to give her a full on lecture about how she shouldn't have played and how her ankle would never heal if she kept doing strenuous activities. She just sat there and listened to them talk, stunned, but happy, that her friends really do care for her.

"Are you even listening to us?"

"We're just lecturing you for your own good, Sakura-chan."

"_KYAAA! KUKAI-SAMA!_"

The three Guardians turned their heads toward the soccer field and found the Jack's Chair standing while his cheerleaders, well, cheered.

Viridian eyes snapped to stare at a disappointed looking Yamada.

'_Maybe he didn't get in.'_

* * *

><p>"You did great, Souma-kun."<p>

"Of course I did! I'm the captain after all!"

"Yeah!"

The four of them were currently walking down the street, heading towards their homes. The sun was already setting, casting an orange glow on everything around them. Nadeshiko, Kukai and Amu were currently laughing and talking about practice, while Sakura's mind was elsewhere.

"Is something wrong, Sakura-chan?"

"Huh?" Sakura looked up and saw her three companions looking worriedly at her.

"Is it your ankle?"

"Nah. It's fine."

"You getting hungry?"

"Ye—Wait, no!"

The three of them laughed at her as she pouted and puffed her cheeks.

"You guys are mean." She grabbed Amu's arm and tugged her towards the direction of their homes.

"We'll see you guys later!"

"Yeah. Come watch the match tomorrow!"

"Eh?"

"What's with that reaction, Haruno?"

"Why would I bother watching you when I know that you can't even beat me, Souma?"

"That's a low blow!"

"You know it's true."

"Shut up!"

"I was kidding! Of course we'll watch." Sakura snickered as she turned around and walked arm-in-arm with Amu, seeing as Amu's house was on the way Sakura's apartment complex.

* * *

><p>The sound of a ball hitting cement could be heard as Sakura made her way towards her apartment.<p>

She spotted Yamada, not too far away from her. She made her way down to where he was practicing and sat down in the grass a few feet behind him.

"You know, if you kick the ball with your toes, it'll be less accurate and lose its power."

Yamada jumped at the sound of the voice, while Sakura just snickered. She stood up from her sitting position and stood beside the taller boy. She took the ball from his feet and kicked it towards the goal using her laces. It went past the drawn goalie and hit an open area in the cement. The ball then rebounded and went straight for Sakura. She jumped so it could hit her chest and let it fall to the grass.

"See? My friend always reminded me to never use my toes."

Sakura softly kicked the ball towards Yamada and went back to sit on the grass.

He imitated Sakura's movements and was able to get a land a strong goal.

"I did it! Thank you Haruno-san!"

"You can call me Sakura, Yamada."

"O-Okay, Sakura-chan."

Yamada continued to practice while Sakura sat there and watched, occasionally giving him pointers and tips on how he could improve.

"You know, Yamada, I admire you for practicing really hard." The black haired boy looked taken aback at the comment and turned a light shade of pink, but he still continued to practice.

"Really? I'm not even that good. I'd never match up to Souma-taichou."

Sakura was startled at how alike they were. Both weren't born with natural talents; the boy in soccer, and the girl in Martial Arts. They both had to train twice as hard to be able to match up to their teammates' abilities. Sakura didn't know what came over her, but she suddenly had the urge to tell him all about her hard work; about how she was the weakest link in her team and how everyone ignored her whenever her teammates were there.

"Let me tell you something. My teammates, they, well, they were born for what they do. One of them came from a really powerful clan and the other had a dad that was well known for Martial Arts—"

"You take _Martial Arts_?"

"Yes, now, shush. I was the weakest in the group. The only one who had no family to ever take part in the Arts. So naturally, people looked down on me. They always called me 'their friend,' or 'their teammate.' They never knew me for myself, they knew me through someone else. So I had to train twice as hard as the both of them combined to be able to even _compare_ to them!"

"What are you trying to say?" He was sitting beside her, now, hanging on to every word that came out of her lips and embedding them to his memory.

"What I'm trying to say is that you don't have to be _born_ a genius to _be_ a genius. Perseverance and determination works too. Even though you won't get to play, you still did your best. I'd rather pick you over Souma, any day! So don't get discouraged and never give up, okay?"

"Okay, Sakura-chan!" He was practically glowing at the compliment she had given him.

* * *

><p>The Guardians were currently eating on a red blanket near the soccer field. Nadeshiko had prepared a glorious lunch for them to eat while they watched the match. All of them were currently kneeling and sitting on their legs, with the exception of Sakura who was sitting with her legs criss crossed in front of her.<p>

Sakura was currently sitting beside Amu, who was sitting beside the King's Chair.

"It's delicious!"

"Nadeshiko-chan, did you cook all of this?"

"Yeah, that's right."

"_WOW!_" Sakura, Amu and Yaya were truly amazed at the Queen's Chair's cooking.

"Ah! They're starting!"

The four of them looked over towards where Nadeshiko was pointing and found Kukai walking with his team. He waved enthusiastically at them.

"Go for it Kukai!"

"_KYAAAA! KUKAI-SAMA!_"

Sakura snickered as the soccer player's fan girls stood behind them and waved their tarp.

The two teams stood facing each other and bowed. They proceeded to spread out across the field and the coach blew a whistle, indicating that the game had begun.

"Souma-kun!"

"Kukai-chi, fight!"

"Hey, you! Don't act like you're still in bed! Give it your all from the start!"

"Let's go Kukai!"

"Get moving, Souma!"

The Guardians were cheering loudly for their member as he skillfully moved across the field.

Sakura scanned the bleachers and found Yamada sitting there with a frown on his face. He looked weary and disappointed. He was watching the game through glassy eyes and looked as if he wasn't even seeing any of it.

"Ah!"

Sakura's head snapped towards the field and saw Kukai splayed out on the field. He just tripped. Sakura then saw that Yamada was out of the bleachers and walking away from the game.

'_This isn't looking too good.'_

"Go for it! Fight! Go! Alright! Kukai! Kukai! Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Sakura tapped Amu's shoulder and told her that she'll be back. That she needed to go to the bathroom.

"Okay, but don't take too long."

The rosette jogged away from the match and towards the forest. She felt a faint dark aura coming from somewhere in the mass of trees. It wasn't suffocating her yet. That meant that the X Egg wasn't born just yet.

"Kura-chan! Kukai-kun's game is that way!"

"No. I need to find Yamada, Rai."

Her Charas were floating beside her, all of them confused as to why their owner would run away from the soccer match.

"There!"

Sakura stopped in a clearing. In the middle was a small, stone structure, inside of which was Yamada sitting on a bench.

Shouts were heard coming from the field that wasn't too far away from them.

"Kukai's definitely the best. I'd never be able to match up to him no matter how hard I try."

The cheers were replaced by gasps and sighs.

"Kukai didn't get the shot. It doesn't matter. I'm not even part of it. _It doesn't matter!_"

Sakura fell to her knees, her eyes shut tightly and her hands gripping her head. She opened her eyes slightly to see what was going on.

An X Egg was born.

"Ah! It's hatching!"

True to Rai's word, the X Egg had a crack in the middle and out came an X Chara. Sakura had never felt anything like this. The darkness was suffocating her ten times more than usual and her vision was getting slightly blurry. Her chest felt constricted and her head was throbbing with pain.

She really needed to get used to this.

"Shoot! Kick! Dribble! Shoot!"

Yamada passed out onto the bench, his hand clutching his heart.

The X Chara sent balls of dark energy flying towards them and Sakura dodged every single one, almost getting hit by a ball that was aimed at her head. Sakura was thanking Kakashi-sensei right about now for her training. It was definitely helping her stay uninjured.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Ah! You guys!"

"Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!"

More balls were headed their way as they all ducked for cover.

'_This match doesn't matter. No matter how hard I try, it means nothing since I won't get to play. I can never be on the same level as a genius!'_

Sakura fought the urge to cover her ears as she looked straight at Yamada, as if willing him to hear her.

"Idiot! Are you really that stupid?" The Jester didn't like it when people thought like that. She used to be one of those, but her friends pulled her out of it and managed to let her stay positive and determined.

"Sakura-chan?" Her brown haired Chara wasn't looking at her. The brunette's focus seemed to be on the still rampaging X Chara.

"Taiga!"

"Here we go!"

"Ore no Kokoro: Unlock!"

Taiga put a hand on her hip while her other one was outstretched and doing a thumbs-up. She was then enclosed in her egg and melted into Sakura's chest.

Sakura was suddenly surrounded by orange light. They were covering her whole form, from head to toe, blinding the Guardians that were watching her. The pinkette then flicked her wrists and the sparkles died out from her hands revealing bright, yellow, fingerless gloves. She snapped her right fingers outwards and the light flew away, leaving an orange shirt in its place that had a yellow lightning bolt in the middle. She snapped her left fingers and moved her hand outwards to form mid-thigh black shorts. Her arms made an X across her waist as she snapped and two black belts appeared on top of her shirt, copying the formation of her arms.

The Jester jumped while kicking her legs out in mid-air and knee-high rainbow socks were seen through an explosion of orange sparkles. She stomped her feet and brown, ankle-high, combat boots formed as the last of the sparkles fell away.

She untied her Leaf headband from her arm and tied it quickly to her forehead, the Leaf symbol turning into a lightning bolt. Her mid-back hair was tied into a messy bun so it wouldn't get in her way.

"Chara Nari: Raging Blossom!" Sakura shouted as she snapped her fingers then made a thumbs-up sign and winked.

"I already told you yesterday! Even though you don't get to play, you still did your best. That's what matters!"

"_Liar! Everything you said yesterday was a lie!"_

More energy balls flew towards her and she moved to the side and out of the way. She appeared behind the X Chara unharmed.

"Perseverance and determination is the key to success, Yamada! But you also need confidence! Even though you're good at what you do, but you don't believe in yourself, who will? Demeaning yourself won't get you anywhere!"

"Chara Nari: Amulet Heart!"

"Now, Amu-chan!"

"Negative Heart, Lock On! Open Heart!" Amu formed a heart with her hands and directed it to the frozen X Chara. The X broke away from the Chara's forehead and it was engulfed in a white light. It died out and revealed a Chara clad in a soccer uniform.

"Thank you, Amu-chan, Sakura-chan! Bye-bye!"

The Chara went back into its egg and melted into Yamada's heart.

Sakura ended her transformation with Taiga and walked up to the now conscious player.

"Player Change! Sato will be replaced by Yamada."

The Jester's ears perked up as she started to shake the black haired boy that just woke up.

"What? Sakura-chan?"

"Shut up, Yamada. Just get your lazy butt out on the field!" She was dragging him out of the bench now, a wide grin spread out on her face.

"Huh?"

"Just come on!" Sakura grabbed the taller boy's hand and dragged him towards the soccer field at an unbelievably fast pace.

"Wait, just a second, Sakura-ch—"

"Yamada! Where have you been? This is our last chance! As soon as you get the ball, head for the goal."

The soccer player looked anxious at this revelation and gripped Sakura's hand for dear life.

"Don't worry Yamada! I'll be cheering you on, so do your best, okay?" The pinkette gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before heading back to the blanket that the Guardians were currently occupying.

"They're losing by one point!"

"How much time is left?"

"Thirty seconds."

Kukai had the ball, and he was surrounded by Seifu Academy players. There was absolutely no opening. Then, he kicked the ball towards Yamada.

The soccer player caught it easily and headed for the goal. He pulled his foot back and used his laces to kick the ball into the goal.

"All right! Let's go, Yamada!"

* * *

><p>"Kukai, hit me!"<p>

The Guardians stared at Yamada in shock. They had just tied with last year's champions, and he wanted Kukai to hit him?

"I didn't care at all about the match until I was put in. Please hit me!"

"He doesn't have to. Kukai say something!" Amu was currently in between the two players, willing both of them to stop.

"Sure thing."

"Not that!"

Before Kukai could land a punch on him though, Yamada surged forward and fell to the ground with his captain under him.

Behind them, stood the Jester, foot raised to the place where Yamada's head previously was.

"Wh-Wh-What was that for? Sakura-chan! That hurt!" The soccer player sat up and rolled away from the Jack's Chair. Kukai sat beside him, glaring at the pinkette who dragged him into it.

"Shut up! You deserved it!"

"Then why'd I get caught up in it, Haruno?"

"Because you're a stupid captain, Souma!"

Sakura held her hand out in front of the fallen soccer player and Yamada looked startled. He took her hand and she pulled him up on his feet.

"Hey! Why'd you help him up and not me?"

"Because you're heavy."

"Wha—No I'm not! You're the heavy one!"

"Hey, Yamada, can you hear something?"

"S-Sakura-chan?"

"Don't ignore me, Haruno!"

"I guess it's just me. Let's go get some dango! My treat!" Sakura swung her left arm around Yamada as the black haired boy turned a light shade of pink at the close proximity he had with the pinkette.

"Hey, guys, you coming?"

"Yes!"

"Yeah!"

"Let's go, Saku-chi!"

"I would like to come as well, Haruno-san."

"Oi, what about me?"

The group was already a few meters away from the Jack's Chair who was still sitting and complaining in the middle of the soccer field, when the Jester turned to look at the irritated soccer player.

"Well, then hurry up, Souma!"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: WOOOH~ IT'S 11/11/11. :O Did you guys wish for something? ;3 ****Hey guise~ Well then, now (apparently) I do Author's Notes. Shocking, I know. So how do you guys like the story so far? Liking it? Loving it? Loathing it? Not reading it? AWESOME! I'm sorry that I updated pretty late, but with all the school work and shiz, I just don't have as much time as I did during break. Bear with it. I'll try to update chapters in at least two weeks; maybe more. I don't wanna make promises though, I might end up breaking it. D; So I won't put any of those "Review or I won't update" shiz, so there. I just wanna know your opinions on this fic so I could improve on whatever you want me to do so. :3 Oh yeah, and if you've got any ideas that you want to share, go ahead and type them down. I'd be happy to read them and (hopefully, if it fits the story plot) put them into the fic. C:**

**So yeaaaah~**

**REVIEW GUISE~ C: **


	6. Prima Of The Hospital

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto or Shugo Chara. Now you know.**

**Chapter Six: Prima Of The Hospital**

"Yaya's the Prima? I thought you'd end up being a tree or a rock!"

"I'm doing it because we have no choice! And there aren't any rocks!"

"I was pretty surprised too when Yaya-chan was announced Prima."

"Not you too, Amu-chi!"

The Guardians were currently sitting around the table inside the Royal Garden. They were drinking tea and discussing Yaya's upcoming performance.

Everyone's Shugo Charas started dancing on the table and their owners laughed in amusement.

Haruno Sakura was currently sleeping; her arms were folded in front of her and her head was resting on top of them. She had on a peaceful expression as she dozed off between Kukai and Amu.

That was before the Jack's Chair poked her cheek.

Her left hand suddenly lashed out and caught the unsuspecting brunette's wrist. The chattering around the table stopped as they paid attention to the scene playing out in front of them.

Sakura's head snapped towards the direction of Kukai and her viridian eyes had a malicious glint in them.

"Do you want to _die_, Souma?" sneered out Sakura. She brought the Jack's Chair's face close to her, an undeniable glare, set on her face.

The older boy shrunk into his seat as he gulped loudly and tried to move away from the enraged pinkette.

"N-no, not at all, Haruno."

"Then I suggest you stop poking people who are obviously sleeping, Souma."

The Jester then let go of Kukai's wrist and got back to sleep as she hadn't gotten any last night.

~FLASHBACK~

"_Haruno."_

"_Tsukiyomi."_

"_Why is your arm bigger than I remember?"_

"_Because I used it."_

"_Why did you do that?"_

"_Because I wanted to."_

_Ikuto then proceeded to drag Sakura towards the kitchen to check on her fracture. She went willingly, because she had used so much of her energy that day in coaching and training. Damn Yamada for having low self-esteem._

_The taller boy unwrapped the bandages covering her right arm and sighed. It was, indeed, bigger than before. Her skin had taken a pale shade and it was stretched and swollen. It's like her sprained ankle had transferred to her arm. _

_Ikuto picked her up and set her on the counter, making sure that her arm was in a comfortable position._

"_Sit there. And stay." The teenager walked out of the kitchen to retrieve more bandages and some ointment for her swelling._

_Sakura huffed, but obeyed, albeit unwillingly._

"_I'm not a dog," said the pinkette as her cheeks puffed up and her fists clenched slightly._

_Ikuto walked back in with two boxes in his arms; one containing the bandages while the other contained the ointment._

_He tenderly rubbed some of the white goo on her arm before wrapping it in bandages. _

"_That should do for now."_

_The two then went to the living room and sat comfortably on the couch. _

_They were talking about anything and everything; her teammates, his co-workers, her training, his work, and somehow, Ikuto started rambling about his boss. He was talking passionately about how he should've fought harder for his freedom, his life. He wanted nothing to do with his job, and yet he had to do it anyways. And then he was apologizing. Not to her. Not even for talking bad about his work. He was apologizing for all the wrongs he did because of his stupid excuse of a job._

_Sakura just sat there and listened, her hand playing with his hair and his head was on her lap. His eyes were boring into her own as he continued on, not once breaking eye contact. She didn't cut in or look away because she knew that he needed this. _

_She felt glad to know that he trusted her enough to tell her all these things; to show her this side of him. _

_He felt relieved to know that she wasn't judging him and asking questions._

_The two had sat there all night, not even noticing the time until an alarm clock resounded through the whole apartment._

"_Dammit, Tsukiyomi! I didn't get any sleep!" _

"_If you hadn't noticed, Haruno, I haven't gotten any either."_

~END FLASHBACK~

Amu lightly shook the sleeping pinkette while the rest of the Guardians looked on anxiously.

"Sakura-chan, we can leave now," Amu said softly, as to not alarm the girl.

The Jester blinked several times before everything came into view.

"Morning."

The Jack's Chair face planted onto the table as Sakura looked curiously at him.

"What happened to Souma?"

"You happened, Haruno."

Kukai lifted his head up to look at the obviously drowsy girl.

"I think you should go home and rest Sakura-chan. You look really tired." Sakura nodded vaguely towards the Queen's Chair and stood up.

"See you guys tomorrow. Taiga, Rai, Kaori, you guys could stay if you want, just remember to get home before dark."

* * *

><p>Sakura had been training relentlessly for the past few hours. She had not listened to Nadeshiko and went straight to the training grounds.<p>

It was already dark out and the Haruno was _exhausted._

'_I think that's enough for today. I really should be heading home.' _

As the pinkette walked through the streets, occasionally bumping into someone, she could barely keep her eyes open from the fatigue. She was moving at a very slow pace and her hands were barely supporting her bag. Her knees hardly held her up as she took step after step towards her apartment.

Sakura was barely paying attention to anything happening around her. She was oblivious to the fact that she was barely moving anymore and that she was about to crash to the pavement. Her head drooped forward as her eyes closed.

"_HARUNO!_"

Viridian oculars snapped open as two pairs of arms stopped her from hitting the ground.

"Souma, Tsukiyomi." Sakura stood up straight and regarded the two boys in front of her.

"Are you that stupid? You were about to collapse!"

"Why are you only heading home now? You left the Royal Garden hours ago!"

"Shut up. If you two are done shouting, I'd like to go to bed." The Jester stared blankly at the two before turning around and heading home.

A hand grabbed her wrist and she suddenly found herself on the back of a brunette.

"I'm taking you home, Haruno. I don't trust you to walk by yourself."

"You don't even know where she lives, brat."

"Yeah I do! I walked her home before, when she treated us to dango."

"So, what? That doesn't change the fa—"

"Both of you just shut up and bring me home."

* * *

><p>"Sakura-chan, get up!"<p>

"You'll make me late if you keep that up."

Team 7 was currently waking up their only female member. She had slept right through her alarm and still refused to wake up after the numerous prodding and poking on Sasuke's and Naruto's part.

"You'll need to get up sometime, you know!"

The blonde was now talking on about how she would die of too much sleep if she didn't get up and how they would never buy her dango every again.

Sasuke, being fed up with Naruto's constant blabbering and Sakura's non-responsiveness, threw the sheets off of the pinkette's tiny frame.

"If you're not going to wake up soon, so Kami help me, I will drag you to your school looking like that." The raven haired boy was beyond pissed at this point. His head was throbbing and Naruto's loud voice did not help in easing the pain. Not that he cared.

He had become immune to Sakura's morning temper after a while since the two would frequently sleep over and crash at his house. He didn't mind though. In fact, he loved it when they stayed over, but Sasuke would never admit that out loud.

"What the _hell_ is your problem, _Uchiha_? Couldn't you see that someone was _sleeping_ here? Or have you gone _blind_? Is your _ego_ too much for you these days, huh, _Chicken butt_? Or maybe—"

"Sakura just shut up and get ready."

* * *

><p>It was sunny out and the students of Seiyo Academy were stuck inside the confines of their classrooms, listening to their teachers droning on about their lesson.<p>

Fifth year Star Group's class had had numerous lectures throughout the day. Namely because no one would listen to the teacher and would pay more attention to what was happening outside.

Sakura had long since abandoned trying to listen attentively to the adults. She would try to for some time but eventually, she would lose all interest and would choose to look out of the window. No one could blame her though, seeing as everyone else was doing the exact same thing she was. The teacher had given up all attempts to keep the concentration of the class on her and opted to read a book instead. None of the students noticed. They remained ignorant to everything happening inside the classroom and stayed absorbed in their daydreams of the outside.

_Knock Knock_

The occupants of the room did not move, nor did any of them show that they heard the sound. They were too engrossed in their own thoughts to even register anything that was happening in the real world.

_Knock! Knock! Knock!_

The sound was louder now and done with more urgency. Yet, none of them still heard it. They were oblivious to everything, including the teacher.

_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!_

Heads snapped in the direction of the door, all wondering who would be hitting the wood with such force. They didn't see why the person would be in such a hurry. It was just the middle of the day and no one could find a reason why someone would knock with such force and urgency.

_SLAM!_

The door burst open to reveal a harassed looking assistant behind an enraged looking blonde. He was wearing a different uniform from the ones that they were. Red pants were covering his legs and fell to his knees. An untucked, white, button up shirt was seen under a black sweater; both of which were rolled up to his elbows. A Leaf headband was tied around his forehead, the symbol shining proudly, and three black lines were running across either side of his cheek.

"Sakura-chan!" He was rushing towards her now, a panicked expression splayed out on his face.

"Huh, Naruto?" There was no way that he was here. Why would he be? He was supposed to be at school and, judging by his uniform, he must've been in a hurry to get there.

"Sasuke-teme is in the hospital!"

* * *

><p>"Get out of the way!"<p>

Sakura and Naruto were currently shoving through a throng of people; the former being careful not to hit her right arm, and the latter shielding his nose from harm. They were both in the hospital lobby where numerous people were residing in. All of them were sprawled out everywhere; the chairs, the floor, the tables, and each of them were there for the same purpose. They all seemed to be waiting for news on the situation of their loved ones. But the duo felt no pity towards them. Why should they care? None of them was Sasuke.

They finally made it to the desk where a distressed looking nurse was searching frantically for her phone. Sakura looked at her companion and found that his expression matched hers; both were looking bemused and anxious.

"Excuse me, but we're looking for Uchiha Sasuke."

The nurse had not turned to look at them and didn't seem to have heard what Sakura had said. Or if she did, she didn't show it. Sakura was beginning to get annoyed by this woman. Just because she was a kid, didn't mean that she should be ignored. She was eleven years old, dammit! She demanded respect!

"_Excuse me,_ what room is Uchiha Sasuke in?" The woman still did not reply. She had found her phone some time ago and was now fiddling with the buttons, the screen lighting up her make-up covered face.

Sakura's patience was waning. Her eye twitched in irritation and her jaw was tight. Naruto saw that his teammate was about to explode and made a move to stop her. The blonde encircled his arms around the small girl's shoulders and rested his chin on top of her head to stop her from pouncing on the unsuspecting nurse.

"Ahem. Yes, we're looking for Uchiha Sasuke-teme's room. If you don't tell us where he is, we'd happily barge into every room until we find him. That includes the ladies' bathroom." Naruto said it rather loudly as to gain the girl's attention.

"Wh-Whose room?" Alas, it did. But unfortunately, she wasn't listening.

"_Uchiha Sasuke._" Sakura's voice held open annoyance and animosity, though it was directed to who she was speaking to and not who she was speaking of. She felt quite the opposite towards the raven haired boy. She felt worried and uneasy, knowing that he was in one of the rooms in this very building. But nonetheless, he would get chastised for what he had done. He was an idiot after all.

~FLASHBACK~

"_What do you mean he's in the hospital?" _

_The two were yellow and pink blurs, running down the street and towards the local hospital. _

"_That's exactly what I mean!" _

_Naruto had pulled her out of the classroom and was gone as soon as he had gotten there. They were now frantically tearing through the streets to get to their teammate._

"_How'd he end up in the hospital? This is _Uchiha freaking Sasuke_ we're talking about!" Sakura was still in shock thinking about the raven haired boy. He was just too stubborn to go to the hospital. He'd rather bleed to death than go to a _clinic_, let alone a _hospital.

"_He got into a fight and collapsed!'' Naruto had witnessed Sasuke falling to the floor unconscious. He was so sure that his friend would kick their asses, but he was proven wrong the minute Sasuke started receiving punches and kicks. _

_Sakura should've known. She should've _known,_ dammit_._ Sasuke had been acting strange that morning; frequently pinching the bridge of his nose, letting out frustrated sighs, and lagging behind the two. _

_Oh Kami, she should've just _known.

"THAT IDIOT! _Why didn't he say anything?_ _When I get my hands on him, so Kami help me, I will wring his neck—"_

"_Sakura-chan, I think those middle schoolers already did enough of that."_

"_Middle schoolers?"_

~END FLASHBACK~

"H-He's currently in an E-Emergency R-Room." The frightened nurse looked uneasily at the two and double checked her papers. Her phone had been stowed away in her pocket, in fear that the two children would grab it from her and smash it against the wall.

"Where's that?" Naruto had beaten Sakura to it, seeing as the pinkette was currently struggling in his hold, probably to run to their weakened teammate.

"I-It's on the s-second floor thr-through the double doors."

Naruto grabbed Sakura's hand and ran to the stairs at a prohibited pace. He ignored the shouts of protest coming from the girl behind the desk and jumped the stairs two at a time. Sakura had no difficulty catching up, her desire to know of Sasuke's condition growing with every step they took. The blonde kicked the door open and looked for a set of double doors. The second floor looked eerily like the first. Everything was white; the walls, the floor, the ceiling. The only things that were different were the number people here and that the person who they were asking for directions was nicer and paid more attention to them.

"Down there and to the left. I'm pretty sure they rushed someone in some time ago."

Loud footsteps pounded against the stark white floor, echoing through the almost empty hallway. Why it was empty was a mystery to the two; a mystery they weren't that keen on solving at the moment.

Naruto and Sakura pushed through the double doors, chests heaving and hands still intertwined. A faint red glow caught the girl's attention and she slowly tugged Naruto towards the source. They stopped in front of a white door, on top of which were the letters _ER_, shone in big bold letters and were lighted up, signaling that there were, indeed, people inside the room. The door opened, creaking in a creepy manner as a white coat clad man exited.

"Ah! You must be Uchiha-san's friends, yes?" The doctor sounded foreign and had somewhat jumbled up the words. The two understood him nonetheless.

"Yeah. Is he okay?" Sakura was gripping Naruto's hand for dear life and the blonde was doing the same. Their knuckles were white from the pressure both were exerting on the other's hand.

"He's quite alright! He just got some injuries and had a slight fever. He is well now." The man took off his coat and gave the children reassuring smiles as he turned to walk out of the double doors.

"Are we allowed to see him?" The pinkette had wanted to see him the minute she heard he was in the hospital. She was worried about him.

"It would not be wise to do so right now, Little Miss. Maybe you should wait a while. Now if you'll excuse me, lunch awaits!"

The two teammates looked at each other, relief evident on both of their faces. Good. It was nothing serious. Sakura let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and loosened her grip on Naruto's hand, though she didn't let go. The blonde guided them to a set of chairs facing the emergency room, so they could monitor the people going in and out of said room. Sakura rested her head on the taller boy's shoulder and Naruto put his cheek against the top of her head. With their hands still locked together, they waited anxiously to see their teammate.

* * *

><p>"YOU IDIOT!"<p>

"Sakura-chan, you're choking him!"

"He deserves it, the arrogant prick!"

Team 7 was sitting around a hospital bed, surrounding a beaten looking Sasuke. His fever was gone and his cuts were disinfected. The only injury noticeable was his black eye.

"Why are you my student again?" Kakashi had gotten there after the raven haired boy got settled into a room, saying something about an old lady and the road of life. He was currently sitting there, watching in amusement as Naruto held Sakura back from pouncing any more on the injured pre-teen.

"If that's all you're going to say _and_ do, why are you even here?" Sasuke was pissed off for three reasons. One, he was in a _hospital_. Two, his teammate had _choked_ him and was still attempting to. And three, they were making snide comments about him. Talk about adding insult to injury.

"Because you just _had_ to be an arrogant douche with a stick up his ass! You know you're not feeling well, and yet you don't tell anyone. As if that's not bad enough! You just had to get into a fight with _middle schoolers_! You _arrogant Chicken Butt_!" Sakura was lunging at him, her slender fingers reaching out to wrap around the raven haired boy's neck. There was already a light pink imprint of her hands around Sasuke's pale neck, for Naruto had only pulled her off of him after the pinkette was able to strangle Sasuke for a while.

"Just go away. You're making me feel worse. All of you." Sasuke didn't mean what he said. The second part, yes, but he didn't really want them to go away. He wanted them to stay. He wanted them to do the exact opposite and just _sit_ with him and talk to him; not throttle him to death.

"Then we're doing the right thing!" Sakura was still attempting to jump on Sasuke, struggling violently against Naruto's hold on her waist. The Haruno girl knew that he was already injured, yet she found that he hadn't quite learned his lesson.

He was always doing this. Putting up a barrier between himself and his teammates. He wouldn't inform them if something was wrong with him. They'd have to find out on their own and sometimes, it'd be too late. He had gotten into so much trouble before because of this. They would've thought that Sasuke would've learned his lesson by now. But he didn't.

That stupid melodramatic drama queen.

Oh, how Sakura wanted to strangle him.

"Let go! Just once! Come on! You can't possibly let him go without a beating!"

"Sakura-chan, he's already been beate—_OW_!"

"_I'LL GET YOU THIS TIME, CHICKEN BUTT!_"

* * *

><p>"Sakura-chan."<p>

"Yeah?"

"Apologize."

"Sorry, Naruto."

"I meant to Sasuke."

"Hell no."

Hatake Kakashi was, at present, sitting across a fuming Haruno Sakura, and a pained Uzumaki Naruto. There was a tiny blue black spot on Naruto's torso which had bloomed when Sakura elbowed him to break free from his grip. An ice pack was resting on top of it, relieving the usually hyperactive blonde. He wasn't the only one Sakura had hurt.

Uchiha Sasuke was lying on the hospital bed, the bright red imprint of Sakura's hands evident against the pale skin of his neck. It looked like a bright red choker, but upon closer examination, you could see the dainty, slender fingers that wrapped around the raven haired boy's skin. He was glaring at his sorry excuse of a teammate and was rubbing the burning flesh that was his neck.

"Come on, just do it." Kakashi didn't like it when there was a quarrel between his team. They always had one about every day, so he shouldn't be surprised. He knew that they'd get over it soon and get back to normal, but that didn't mean that he liked them fighting all the time.

"I'm sorry that you're such a stupid, arrogant arse." Sakura, being one to never yield, crossed her arms over her chest. She was glaring at the table beside Sasuke's bed and her lips were pursed in concentration.

"Apology accepted." Sasuke knew that that was as close as he would get from the pinkette. He had known her since he was practically born, and, even if she was unpredictable at times, he still knew her regular habits. So when the boy looked directly into her eyes, though she was looking elsewhere, he saw under all the anger and annoyance, worry and concern were flashing in her vibrant green eyes.

Sakura never could hide her emotions fully. She may fool others, but she wouldn't fool her long term best friend and teammate.

"Sakura, come here."

Forest green clashed with midnight black as the girl contemplated on whether to abide by his request or not. Seeing as he was currently injured, Sakura complied and stood up from her seat. She stopped to the right of Sasuke's bed and looked at him skeptically. Her expression turned into one of shock as Sasuke pushed two of his fingers to her forehead.

"I'll be fine. So stop worrying."

Sasuke probably thought that saying this would reassure her and make her feel better. The first few times he said that, she had believed him. But he's been saying that for a while now, and Sakura had begun to question whether or not he was just saying that to relieve her.

"That's what you always say, idiot. How can I stop worrying when you're in the _hospital_? You _hate_ hospitals! How can I stop worrying when you got into a fight with _middle schoolers_? How can I stop worrying when you won't even tell me if something's wrong?" Sakura had her head down as she spoke, eyes glistening with unshed tears. Her fists were clenched in frustration as she spoke her thoughts aloud. She didn't want to tell him, but she had to. The words were just going out of her mouth like word vomit and she had to bite her lip so more won't come out. She wanted—no— _needed_ him to understand why he was such a complete utter _idiot_.

Didn't he know that seeing him like that hurts her too? Heck, she probably felt more pain than he did. She hated seeing him like that. It always made her feel weak and useless. It reminded her that she could do nothing to help when they need her.

Sakura looked up when she felt pressure on the top of her head and found that Sasuke had put his hand there. He was ruffling her soft pink locks with a tiny smile gracing his lips. Sasuke was never one who enjoyed physical contact—or smiling for that matter— so this came as a surprise to the only female member of Team 7. Sakura rubbed her eyes to rid herself of the tears that were threatening to fall any moment. She didn't like crying. She had abandoned crying after she met Ino. She had promised herself that she wouldn't show weakness unless necessary.

"I'll tell you if something's wrong. I won't keep it to myself anymore. I promise." Sasuke was studying her reaction carefully, his hand still rested upon her head. Doubt filled her eyes before she shook her head and locked eyes with the injured boy.

"You better, _Sasu-cakes_." Her face broke out into a breathtaking smile and Sasuke found himself unable to breathe. Since when did their teammate have this effect on him? He snuck a glance at Naruto and found that he too was looking confused and overwhelmed. He messed up her hair and pushed her head to the side. She stumbled slightly and gripped the bed, before straightening out and pinning the Uchiha with a glare.

"What the hell was that for, you_ bipolar drama queen_?"

"Hn."

* * *

><p>When Sakura got home, she was surprised, to say the least.<p>

Inside her living room, the Guardians were conversing loudly with Tsukiyomi Ikuto. Of course, conversing meant that they'd be arguing and such.

"What are you doing here, cat thief?"

"What's it to you, brat?"

"Where's Saku-chiiiiiii?"

"Shut up! The both of you!"

"I think we should all just wait quietly for Sakura-chan to come."

It was probably about seven o'clock in the evening and Sakura was stunned to be hearing the voices of her, err, friends. She knew it was a Friday, so why were they here inside her apartment? Shouldn't they be out having fun? Heck, Sakura didn't even know how they got in. And so she voiced out her concerns.

"Why are you guys here? And how did you get in without a key?"

The conversations were dropped as they finally took notice of the owner of the apartment. She was still in her school uniform, looking rather tired and disoriented. Her hair was still disheveled as she didn't have the attention span to fix it after Sasuke had so kindly messed it up for her. And all at once, she was painfully knocked off of her feet and crashed onto the floor in a tangled heap. She felt pressure on her right arm, but did not comment on it, seeing as the whole of her was smothered in limbs.

"We thought you died!"

"Did anyone infect you with their germs?"

"Are you okay?"

Through the flurry of questions, Sakura vaguely noticed that Ikuto was standing, unscathed, against the couch. She shot a pleading look towards the teenager and she suddenly found herself being lifted from the pile of bodies on the floor. The pinkette took big gulps of air, the feeling of claustrophobia slowly creeping up on her as she remembered being encaged under so many people.

When she was finally set down, Ikuto poked her arm and she winced. It had been squished beneath numerous heavy figures and had hit the floor upon impact. The cat-like boy sent a glare in the direction of the Guardians as they dusted themselves off before pulling the rosette down onto the floor to sit with them.

"I'm going to have a performance tomorrow, Saku-chi!" Yaya took out a ticket and held it towards her with a proud grin on her face. Sakura had heard from the other Guardians that Yaya had been made Prima, seeing as the original Prima had sprained her ankle. Kami knows how much that hurts.

"Yeah! We're all gonna watch her tomorrow, Sakura-chan!" Amu encouraged her counterpart to accept the invitation, excitement evident on her features. The Joker had often accompanied Yaya to her ballet practices and had cleansed an egg earlier today. She had texted Sakura and filled her in on how Maika, the supposed Prima, had gotten an X Chara and how she had had her first Chara Nari with Miki as Amulet Spade.

"I've been meaning to catch up on training," Several faces fell as they listened to the Jester. "But I guess that'll have to wait, won't it?" Sakura broke out into a grin and took the piece of paper from Yaya's outstretched hand.

"You bet it will, Haruno!"

* * *

><p>"Sakura."<p>

Said girl turned towards the owner of the voice and gave him a smile. She had grown accustomed to his presence so it wasn't a surprise that he was there lounging on her couch. He didn't leave with the rest of them. He stayed and remained quiet until the rest of the occupants of the room left, save for the two of them.

"Tsukiyomi."

Sakura saw him frown at this, before she turned her back on him and continued to wait for the instant ramen to cool down. She hadn't eaten anything this whole day—breakfast didn't count since she only ate a piece of bread—and quite frankly, she was starving. She grabbed a pair of chopsticks and walked towards the couch, carefully putting down the bowl on the coffee table then proceeded to shove Ikuto's feet off the sofa. He retracted them and sat criss crossed on the couch.

The rosette turned her attention to the television and was surprised to see a chick flick.

"I didn't know you liked watching those," she said, amusement lacing her voice. Sakura reached out and positioned the bowl on her lap in a way that it won't fall if she wasn't holding it.

"And I didn't know you went to the hospital," Ikuto retorted, his sapphire oculars boring into hers. She shifted uncomfortably in her place and started to eat the noodles, her slurps resounding through the room.

"I was visiting a friend of mine. He got sent there earlier today." Sakura kept her eyes trained on the screen across her and made sure to seem as if she was really into the movie, though she was not.

"Ahhh… One of your teammates I suppose?" He was watching her carefully, looking for any sign that she was lying. At her nod, he let the subject drop. Though he was curious, he now knew that nothing bad happened to her and relaxed. He looked towards the television and saw, from the corner of his eyes, Sakura quickly look down at her ramen with a pinkish tinge to her cheeks, looking at it as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. He raised a brow at her behavior and felt a smirk tug on his lips. Now he knew why she was like that.

The two main characters were making out as if there was no tomorrow.

He snickered at the Haruno who was now slurping the noodles rather loudly. She sent him a pointed glare and swallowed.

"It's not funny! Can you see what they're doing? It's disgusting!" she exclaimed, setting the empty bowl back on the table. She wasn't facing him, but he was sure that there was a pout on her face.

"Sakura." The pinkette glanced at him anxiously.

He suddenly grabbed her chin and brought her face closer to his, resulting into her stumbling forward and almost onto him. She instinctively put her hands on the sofa on either side of his waist with her knees supporting her, so as not to completely fall on him. She saw him glance down at her lips briefly before he swooped down…

And licked the area right beside her lips to rid it from the noodle that was previously there.

"Wh-Wh-What was that for, _pervert_?" Sakura was flushed red from embarrassment and anger. How dare he do that? He could've just pointed it out like a normal person, but _noooo_. He had to go all pervert on her and _lick_ the piece of food away. Yeah, _lick._ Not even _flick._

"It was annoying and it's improper to have food hanging out of your mouth," he answered coolly, not making a move to let go of her.

"_Improper?_ I'll tell you what's _improper_! It's _improper_ to _lick_ someone! You're not a _dog_! You're a _cat. _Cats lick _themselves,_ not other people!" If looks could kill, Ikuto would surely be dead by now after a painful torture session. But looks didn't kill, so he was still alive and breathing, holding onto her chin and watching her in amusement. Sakura didn't even seem to be aware of the close proximity between the two.

"Cats lick others to show affection," he said plainly.

And before Sakura could even react—whether it be verbally or physically—he pressed his lips to her own. The kiss was chaste and short and she stayed still, too shocked to push him away or to respond. She didn't need to though, because he had already pulled away from her.

"Was that disgusting?" He had let go of her chin and was now looking rather too amused for her liking.

"Yeah, it was!" Sakura was fuming. Who did the guy thing he was, randomly kissing her and making her feel uncomfortable? He had no right to do that! No right, dammit!

"Really? Then why do you look mad? Was it too short for you?" he teased, leaning forward just a tad, but close enough for her to feel his breath fanning across her face.

She quickly moved back and stayed as far away from the teenager as much as the couch would allow.

"I look mad because you just kissed me, you moron!" she gritted out. The rosette's face was pinker than her hair; almost as red as a tomato.

"Oh? Did I steal your first kiss?" Ikuto raised a brow in her direction, acting as if he was teasing her again. He was actually more curious than he let on.

"You wish, Tsukiyomi!" She stood up from the couch and made her way to the room. When her back was turned from him, her face turned an even darker shade of red as she recalled the events that had just happened. She stopped in front of her bedroom door and called over her shoulder, "If you're just going to sexually assault me all night, then I'll be going to bed, Tsukiyomi-baka."

She walked into the room and shut the door behind her. Once she was inside, her hands went up to touch her lips. A faint smile formed there. Unbeknownst to her, a certain Chara bearer was smirking and feeling smug on the other side of the door, except he was also wondering who got her first kiss.

He would find out and beat the kid to a bloody pulp.

* * *

><p>"Woah! Yaya-chan is really good!"<p>

"She _is_ the Prima."

The Guardians were currently sitting in the middle row inside a theater. It was today that Yaya was having her recital and she was impressing more than just her friends. Her movements were elegant and graceful, and confidence was just radiating off of her in waves.

Although the rest of the audience couldn't see it, under that mask was a smug conniving Yaya, wanting to prove her friends wrong. She kept rubbing it in their faces that she would be able to dance in front of hundreds of people the next day.

When she finally got over the fact that Tsukiyomi Ikuto had just kissed her, she checked her fracture and was frankly surprised. Just hours before the…_ incident_… Sakura had been squished under the heavy weight of the Guardians. It was a wonder that her fracture was actually looking and getting better.

"She sure showed you, huh, Souma."

"Shut up, Haruno."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Ohhai again~ I updated pretty late, didn't I? Dx Well, in my defense, exams are coming up and my internet kind of died. It's back up now, so I can _finally_ update. x) I kind of had a hard time thinking of what to put in this chapter, but it turned out okay. Right? I reaaaally wanna hear your opinion on this. PLEASE~ Be a kind soul and leave a review. It really makes my day. C:**

**WHEEE~**

**REVIEW, GUISE~ C:**


	7. Sunday Mayhem

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Boo.**

**Chapter Seven: Sunday Mayhem**

"But it's a _Sunday_!"

"It doesn't matter. Now, dress up and let's go."

"No! You can't make me, Pinky!"

Haruno Sakura was currently hidden in the confines of her blanket, avoiding the intense glare of Hinamori Amu. She had gone there knowing that her friend wouldn't get up until she was physically hauled out of the bed.

Being the ever-so-kind friend that she is, Sakura instantly hugged the sheets closer to her in order to cover her whole form from view. Amu would be more than willing to drag the pinkette out of bed, but seeing as her younger sister was singing her heart out in the kitchen, she wouldn't want to make that much noise or Ami would come rushing in and cry at the scene before her.

So the Joker settled with shaking the girl until she gets annoyed.

"Sakura-chan, we need to leave. We're gonna be late." In all reality, Amu just wanted to go so she could see her beloved Prince, though she would never admit it out loud. Heck, she wouldn't even admit it to herself, much less others. So imagine her surprise when Sakura shoots up from her bed, effectively throwing off both the blanket and Amu in the process, and pinned the Chara bearer with a pointed look.

"You just want to go because of Hotori." Sakura was never someone to mess with in the morning. Her temper was no laughing matter if you received the brunt of it. No one would dare to wake her up from her slumber, especially if she had a rough night. Occasionally, morons would rouse her from her sleep, oblivious to the rage hidden inside her small frame.

Of course, the only one who could get on par with her morning temper was Itachi who, contrary to popular belief, would turn into the devil himself and rain his wrath down upon the unfortunate being that woke him up in this ungodly hour. Put both in a room while being awoken by force would be a death wish to anyone.

"No... That's not true. I just so happen to think that we should be productive today and get an early start." By the end of her statement, Amu had flushed red at the thought of being caught lying. She promptly stood from the floor and headed for the bathroom with her friend in tow.

"It's either you take a bath, or I will do it for you." The Joker proceeded to walk out of the room and towards her little sister who was now singing full blast another song that didn't sound familiar to either of the two.

Little giggles erupted from somewhere inside the room and Sakura stopped abruptly before lunging back on her bed. Three tiny squeals followed after the pinkette tackled all her Charas to her pillow.

"Sakura-chan, you better be in your bathroom!" Another round of high-pitched giggling came from the three Charas and Sakura sent them a halfhearted glare.

"Just wait till I get my hands on you guys. You'll regret ever giggling at my misery."

* * *

><p>Sakura sat in one of the six chairs that were scattered around the table. She was clad in her uniform and wore it the way she usually did now that she was a Guardian; untucked white shirt with the top few buttons opened and the sleeves folded to the elbows, loosely knotted red tie, black blazer missing, kunai holster strapped to her black biker shorts under a red mid-thigh checked skirt, knee-high red and black socks, she had long abandoned her school shoes for ordinary black, high cut chucks, and her usual Leaf forehead protector tied to her upper right arm. The rest of the Guardians were swarming around Amu's little sister as she twirls and acts cute. Her Charas along with the other Charas were playing with her as she completely ignored the Guardians.<p>

Sakura had calmed down from her fit this morning and was serenely drinking tea. She wanted nothing more than to doze off on the table, but decided against it.

She could've been training right now. Kami knows she needed it. And apparently, a certain busty blonde and grey haired pervert knew it too. They had postponed her team's monthly sparring and she was thankful for that.

Her whole team was in no condition to spar: Naruto with his broken nose, Sakura with her fractured arm and Sasuke since he was still in the hospital. None of them complained about not having to spar. They needed the rest so their injuries would heal faster.

Their monthly routine was still in a few days – a week at most – but there was no way that they would be ready for it.

"Well then, shall we start the meeting? Today's assignment is to read these." Tadase stated in a somewhat authoritative voice. He brought out a black box with gold stars on the lid. He opened it and Sakura peered over Amu to look at what was inside. There was a neat pile of papers stacked on top of one another. The King's Chair started passing around equal amounts of paper to each of the Guardians and Sakura looked closely and scanned what it said.

"My dream. My wish." Amu read it aloud, voice unsure if what she was seeing was right. Sakura looked to her left and raised a brow at the Jack's Chair who shrugged in return.

"The academy's first grade students wrote these!" Yaya was now explaining, in excruciating detail, about the time she filled up this form. Sakura sent Amu a questioning glance and the girl waved it away.

"Might as well get this over with." Sakura let out a sigh and started to read the first form that she picked up. It was about how a girl wanted to be as 'Cool and Spicy' as Hinamori Amu. Sakura stifled a chuckle and read more of the interesting content. This girl's wish was...

_To have a romantic kiss with Kukai-kun and marry him and run away together._

Sakura burst into a round of snickers and saw that the Guardians were staring at her. She discreetly looked over at Kukai and her snickers grew louder.

"What's so funny, Haruno?"

"I didn't know you had a thing for little girls, Souma." She handed the paper to Yaya who started laughing. The form was passed around the table and soon all the Guardians were laughing – or, in Sakura's case, snickering – at the Jack's Chair who was bright red from reading the words written on the innocent paper.

"Geez. Kids these days."

* * *

><p>Sakura's head snapped towards the glass door, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, ears strained to hear any sound. Her hand was automatically resting on her kunai holster, immediately sharpening her senses.<p>

She saw something there; something small for that matter. She also heard a noise coming from that direction. It was soft, almost undetectable, but to her trained ears it was as loud as a shout. Her muscles were tensed up, ready to move into action if need be.

"Sakura-chan?"

She snapped out of her stupor and turned to glance at Amu. She was looking at her with a puzzled expression, her gaze silently questioning her if she was okay. The Jester nodded in response to their unspoken conversation. "I thought I heard something."

Amu pursed her lips together before nodding as well and going back to work. Sakura scanned the area one last time before deeming it safe and relaxing a little. She put back the kunai she was holding and shut her holster, making sure that it wasn't loose around her thigh.

A sigh escaped her lips. She was hoping for some action. She was bored out of her wits, having finished reading all the papers that were assigned to her. None of them were quite interesting. They shared a few chuckles here and there, but aside from that, nothing.

"Ah! Don't tell me all of you wrote these essays as well?" When the Guardians nodded, Amu looked at them in disbelief.

Sakura wrote something like this for Tsunade once. In fact, the whole Team 7 wrote something like this. They had to explain their dreams, hobbies, likes, and dislikes. Sakura saw the activity as pointless and Sasuke saw it as both meaningless and an invasion of privacy. Naruto was able to convince the two to take the paper seriously and write what they really feel. Kakashi gave them an example, although the only thing he really gave was his name.

"That's right! You guys didn't do it because you transferred here." Tadase seemed to contemplate something in his mind. His facial expressions were amusing, to say the least. His inner turmoil seemed to stop when Kukai spoke up. "You guys feel like doing it now?"

This question caused a riot that was Hinamori Amu.

"A-A-Are you dumb? There's no way we're writing that! It's so un-cool!"

"It's showing! It's showing! Amu-chi's stubborn side is showing!"

* * *

><p>Sakura looked out of the glass windows and towards the school. She thought she heard screaming. Maybe it was just her stressing out. She hasn't trained today so she was getting a tad jumpy.<p>

Yeah... That was it.

"How about we take a break?" Tadase was now organizing all the papers after collecting them from the five other Guardians. The minute those words left his mouth, Sakura and Kukai stretched out simultaneously causing the others to snicker.

"What?" This caused them to laugh as the two said it at the same time. Oblivious to the fact that they were the reason for their laughter, the Jack's Chair and the Jester looked at each other and shrugged. If they were left out on a joke, at least they weren't alone.

"I'll get the snacks!" Sakura blinked when she suddenly found herself being hauled out of her chair by an excited Yaya.

"Did you have to bring me?" With a nod, Sakura gave up and let herself be pulled by the hyperactive Ace's Chair. She had to admit, she was hungry as well. The only thing she ate was a bowl of instant noodles, since there was no time for her to prepare a meal.

When Yaya stopped abruptly, Sakura peered at her through her shoulder only to be pulled forward at an alarming speed. She was standing in front of the Guardians again, all of whom had puzzled looks on their faces.

"I can't find Ami-chi or the other Shugo Charas!"

Something clicked inside Sakura's brain. Ami was the one she had been hearing.

She must've been sneaking out of the Royal Garden the first time she heard her. She also recalled that the thing she saw earlier was small; like a little girl. The scream she heard must've been Ami as well. Maybe she saw something scary and let out a scream.

Where she was now, Sakura had no idea. She could be anywhere in the school.

And so, Sakura ran out of the Royal Garden and towards the school.

"Haruno!"

* * *

><p>"They were here."<p>

Sakura was standing outside the Home Economics room, in front of a skeleton of a dragon. It was full of dust and had a dark green blanket over it. She couldn't find a reason as to why it was there, so she settled with the explanation that Ami and the Shugo Charas had been here earlier. This also might be the explanation for the screaming she heard.

With this information, Sakura tried to piece her story together.

When they left, she had heard Kiseki muttering something about finding the Embryo. They must have gone bored from looking around in the study room and moved out to spread out their search. Since she heard a scream coming from here, they went into the school thinking that they might find a clue, and ended up finding this dragon skeleton thing that was in front of her at the moment. It didn't look like it belonged there so she concluded that the Shugo Charas brought it out here for a reason. They could have brought it to scare something off, probably a threat of some sort. She saw tiny muddy paw prints and deduced that they wanted to frighten an animal away from them.

With that theory in mind, she continued her search for Amu's little sister.

* * *

><p>"We found it!"<p>

Sakura sharply turned towards the source of the voices. She was surprised that she recognized most of them. There were probably ten voices; maybe more. She heard loud, heavy footsteps heading her way and was stunned when a yellow and orange blur ran past her. She stumbled slightly just as the figure turned the corner. They hadn't noticed her.

Seeing as she was curious, she quickly rushed after them, determination burning in her viridian eyes. She pumped her feet faster when she caught sight of an orange jacket before it disappeared behind a corner.

Her face broke into a smile when she felt her feet hit soil instead of the usual cement that was the school's flooring. She dashed towards them, feeling a flood of memories hit her as she watched the back of her prey. This reminded her of the times when she would play tag with her friends back in Konoha. Kiba or Naruto would usually start as 'it' and would always end with them being 'it' again.

Sakura hadn't noticed, but she was catching up now.

She could see Ami's small form clutching the neck of none other than Uzumaki Naruto. It seemed as if they hadn't felt her presence throughout the whole chase, and still didn't know she was here.

The Jester stretched her arm out in front of her and closed her hand around a patch of the soft fabric that was Naruto's jacket. He looked back briefly and flashed her a smile, before turning his attention to the path ahead of them. The blonde stopped abruptly, causing Sakura to run into him.

"Wow! It's weal! Da dwagon! It's weal!"

Naruto set Ami down, and she immediately ran towards the tree.

Sakura had to admit; it did look a tad like a dragon. The Shugo Charas were fussing over the tree now and Sakura vaguely noted that she hadn't seen them a while ago. She must have been too focused on catching Naruto. As the Jester scanned the floating Charas, she noted that Naruto's wasn't there. And then it hit her.

_Naruto was in her school._

"Why are you here?" She had her arms crossed over her chest as she gave the blonde an expectant look. Naruto didn't know how, but even though she was shorter than him, she still managed to look down at him. It chilled him to no end.

"Well… Sasuke-teme is gonna be discharged from the hospital later, so I wanted us to go get ramen. I tried calling you, but you wouldn't answer your phone. So I went here." Naruto said it all in one breath, a frantic expression on his face. He didn't want his Sakura-chan to be mad at him. He put on a pout and Sakura averted her gaze. She always had a soft side for him, and now was no different.

"Alright, alright. Now shut up and help Ami dig." The Jester waved her hand in a dismissive manner as Naruto's face broke out into a grin. The blonde's pout works wonders, really.

Sakura sat on a patch of grass a little ways away from the digging kids and Charas. Now that she found them, there's no way she'd let them out of her sights again. But then again, it would be physically impossible for them to leave without her knowing. They were unbearably loud.

The pinkette laid on her back with her limbs spread out around her. She let out an uncharacteristic giggle as she felt the soft grass tickle her head and the bare skin of her thighs. She turned her gaze towards the clouds that were lazily moving across the sky.

Sakura couldn't help but reminisce about the times she spent with a certain lazy ass genius. They would engage in a full on battle of Shogi before going to watch the clouds, not unlike what she was doing now, and just enjoy the other's company. It was quite relaxing.

Sakura shut her eyes as she bathed in sun's mild warmth, listening to the happy voices of her teammate and the other Charas shouting about finding the Embryo and all its treasures.

Sakura felt content just lying there.

She made no move to get up, knowing that they hadn't actually found the Embryo. She didn't find the need to correct them either, seeing as they sounded so joyful and triumphant; so awestruck. A small chuckle made its way past her lips as Sakura continued to lie there with her eyes closed, as if in sleep.

She was at peace.

"Ami!"

But, alas, that peace had to be shattered sometime.

"Hey, you! Who are you? Why are you here? What did you do to Sakura-chan?" The Jester could hear Amu's well hidden agitation. She may be fooling the others, but Sakura could easily pick at the emotions hidden in her voice; dread, worry, frustration.

"Haruno!" Sakura felt a hand on her arm trying to shake her awake. Did she look unconscious or something?

"Relax, Souma. I'm alive." The pinkette sat up and snapped open her eyes, amused at the scene before her.

There stood Amu in all her 'Cool and Spicy' glory, holding her blonde haired teammate by the ear. Ami was trying to haul her sister away from 'The Ramenator,' as Ami so kindly put it, all the while explaining to her about how they were to battle the dragon in order to get the Embryo.

Naruto was shooting her pleading looks as she sat back and chuckled at the predicament the knuckle headed blonde got himself into. Sakura felt warmth on her right arm and looked down to find that Kukai was still holding onto her.

"Souma, you can let go now."

"R-Right…" The Jack's Chair quickly withdrew his hand and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. A microscopic blush made its way to his cheeks, giving it a light pink tinge.

Of course, Sakura, oh so loveable and _dense_ Sakura, was oblivious to the way his face had a light blush.

"Sakura-chan!"

Naruto was now struggling against Amu's hold, thrashing around like a madman. The Haruno contemplated on whether or not she should save her teammate and chose to do so. He was going to treat her to dango later. Might as well get on his good graces.

The rosette stood up and made her way towards her friend and the rest of the Guardians. Amu immediately let go of Naruto who hid behind Sakura. The poor blonde was whimpering and had to crouch since he was at least a head taller than her.

"Guys, this is Naruto. Naruto, these are the Guardians." As soon as Sakura finished her statement, the Guardians were swarming around Naruto and asking him numerous questions all at once.

Oh how she pitied the blonde. There was nothing she could do about it though. There was a new kid that they didn't know about; of course they'd be curious. Usually, the Guardians would have information about anyone right at their fingertips, but not right now.

So Sakura let them be. She'd get Naruto out of there once they start asking questions too personal for her liking.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Naruto? I forgot to ask, but where's Kyuubi?"<p>

"Ah! That's right! I left him in the hospital to watch over Sasuke-teme. Just in case he decides to ditch us, you know."

Naruto and Sakura were slowly making their way towards the hospital. There was no rush since their other teammate would get discharged at around five thirty. They had plenty of time to get there. It was just three o'clock after all.

They still had two hours to kill. So the duo decided to take the long way there and walk at a much slower pace than what they were used to. That meant that they would pass the park and that they'd get there in an hour and a half at most.

The two had already stopped by at Sakura's apartment so she could change out of her uniform.

She now wore a plain white v-neck that had a single red cloud printed at the front, matched with bright red shorts. A black kunai holster was strapped to her right thigh accompanied by her black and white checkered egg holder attached to her hip. Her legs were covered in red and white striped socks that reached a couple of inches above her knee and dark red Chucks that ended below her knees. Her petal pink locks were tied in a messy ponytail with some strands of her hair framing her face.

Since they were there, they broke into Sasuke's apartment—which was pretty hard considering the number of traps they had to go through and disable before they reached his room—and brought some of his clothes with them since they were going out after he got released from the hospital.

They were planning to get tomatoes on the way there and rush into Sasuke's room looking as if they ran all the way to the hospital. They found a store just before entering the park and Sakura walked over to buy a few for their recovering teammate. Naruto waited for her in the entrance of the park, casually leaning on one of the many trees that were scattered around the area.

They would always do this back in Konoha.

Sakura would accompany Itachi to the market where they would buy tomatoes because the Uchiha household was running out. Sasuke and Naruto would usually stay behind in the house and play with their toys.

Neither of them minded though. The Uchiha seemed to have a soft spot for her and they grew closer through the years. She would always look forward to spending time with 'Ita-chi'— a nickname that the rosette would use to taunt him. In return, he would call her 'Pinky-chan'— the name still irked her as she thought about it.

As Sakura checked her watch, she was surprised to find that thirty minutes had already past.

The pinkette made her way back to Naruto, who was currently distracted with a blade of grass resting on the palm of his hand. Why it was there, she'd never know.

"Sakura-chan, did you ever wonder why the grass is so beautiful?" Naruto asked as his sparkling blue eyes locked with her vibrant green ones.

"Not exactly…" Sakura's oculars filled with confusion as she tilted her head slightly to examine the blade of grass.

"Well, it's because it's almost the same color as your eyes." Naruto gave her a cheesy grin, a light blush creeping onto his face.

"Eh? But my eyes are much lighter than that." A look of pure puzzlement took over her face as she stared at the field they were standing on.

Naruto felt like hitting his head on the tree he was still leaning on.

There was no way that Sakura was this dense. Was she joking around with him? No. It didn't look like it. She was just completely, _utterly_ dense.

He had just realized that he held growing feelings for her a few days ago and Naruto was determined to get her heart. He knew that Sasuke felt the same way and there was no way he was going to lose to him. This would've been easier had the object of his affections been a little less dense.

But he would not give up. He refused to.

"See, Naruto? The grass is darker than my eyes." Sakura was holding up a piece of grass right beside her eye. The urge to bang his head against the tree was getting unbearable.

Oh, Kami help him now.

* * *

><p>"—And she was chasing this red balloon on the roof! She was gonna fall! Can you believe that? She really thought that the balloon was the Embryo! She would've died if I didn't catch her!"<p>

"I know you're exaggerating, dobe."

"What? Even ask Sakura-chan! Everything I'm saying is true, right Sakura-chan?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Naruto."

Team 7 could see the restaurant even from afar, its neon lights catching the attention of most bystanders. They were complete, save for Kakashi. He said that he had a mission to attend to and that they should still enjoy without him. Naruto, of course, said that they'd have a much better time now that the gray haired man wasn't attending, earning him a hit on the head.

Sasuke had devoured the tomatoes they brought upon laying eyes on them. It seems that the hospital wasn't that keen on giving him any during his entire stay there. Naruto had suggested that he complain about it; tell people how much of a tomato-deprived child he was. The look Sasuke gave him was definitely bone-chilling.

Naruto was way ahead of them, talking loudly about how he was going to finish a hundred bowls of ramen. The two just dawdled behind him, choosing not to get involved in his idiotic daydreams. There was no way the blonde would be able to finish that much food in one night.

Even if he did, how would he pay for a _hundred_ bowls?

That kid was way in over his head. None of them would comment though, seeing as Naruto would be paying for their meals that night, but the two brought money just in case.

If the restaurant looked striking from afar, the place looked even more eye-catching up close. Its bright lights contrasted greatly against the dark night. Compared to the other stores and eateries near it, the restaurant they were going to eat in was far more colorful and homey looking. The sign hanging above the place read '_Ichiban! Your Number One!_' written in kanji.

"Sakura-chan! Sasuke-teme! Look! Look!" Naruto exclaimed, bouncing like the eager little child he is. He was pointing at the eatery eagerly, a huge grin etched on his face. It was as if this was the first time he had seen such a place.

He expertly strolled towards the lady behind a podium and started conversing with her. The hostess seemed to look at her list, before the two started talking rather animatedly with one another.

"Do you think he forgot about us?" Sakura wouldn't put it past her teammate to do just that.

"If we're talking about the dobe, then yes," Sasuke deadpanned. He had gotten unnervingly used to Naruto's antics. He wouldn't be surprised if he had forgotten that they were with him.

A sudden cool breeze swept through them, chilling the rosette slightly. She should've brought a jacket. Really she should have. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the still chattering blonde. If he didn't get them in right now, so Kami help her, she will strangle him with ramen noodles. She felt a distinct warmth on her left side and found Sasuke leaning on her, his position mimicking hers.

"Haruno?"

"Souma?"

And there he stood, in all his soccer, Jack's Chair glory, frozen mid-step with his brothers shooting him confused glances.

He was wearing casual clothing and Sakura realized that this was the first time she had seen him out of his usual uniform. A light green, camouflage, long sleeved shirt was under a darker outer shirt. He had on dark jeans that barely hid the green trainers he always wore. Sakura had to admit, he looked good in normal clothes.

"What are you doing here?" Kukai asked, shocked that he ran into her. He and his family usually had dinner out, considering that it was a Sunday. His brothers were craving some ramen today and it annoyed him that their cravings were passed onto him.

The Jester answered his question by jabbing her thumb in the direction of _Ichiban_, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes at her blonde haired teammate who was still conversing with the hostess.

'_When will he ever stop?'_

"Eh? No way… I'm eating there too!" The brunette felt the need to elbow his brothers' ribs. Which one? _All_ of them. They were snickering—loudly at that—at him. They winked at their youngest sibling and went to enter the restaurant.

That was when he noticed that Sakura wasn't alone. Kukai saw a pale, tall boy with black hair spiked at the back. He wasn't sure what color the boy's eyes were since they were hidden under closed eyelids. At that moment, Kukai felt something bubbling inside his chest. Why was he standing so close to Sakura? And why was she _letting_ him?

"Oi, Sakura."

Sakura averted her attention from the Jack's Chair and focused on the person who called her name. He looked as if he was going to a formal event; dark blue button-up shirt, black blazer, black dress pants, black dress shoes and a loose black tie to top it all off. His dark blue hair was still the same, though it looked slightly tidier.

"Like what you see?" the teenager asked, slowly making his way towards the gawking pinkette.

"Don't make me laugh, Tsukiyomi." Sakura rolled her eyes, wanting to throw her kunai at the girl who was ogling him. She blinked away the feeling, silently questioning her sanity.

Why would she want to stab a girl who was wearing overly provocative clothes and staring at Ikuto a little too long for her liking? Had she finally lost it?

A whole day hasn't even passed and yet the two were bickering and acting like something hadn't even happened last night. It just proved that the two were more comfortable around each other than they let on.

"Cat thief! What are you doing here?" Kukai pointed an accusing finger in his direction and Sakura let out a small snicker.

"None of your business, Souma-brat. Sakura, why are you here with the brat?" Ikuto was glaring at the Jack's Chair, though Sakura was not sure why. The question was directed to her and yet he wasn't even paying attention?

"I just ran into him going here, Tsukiyomi. And I'm having dinner out. Problem?" Sakura inquired, her emerald eyes narrowing slightly as she took in his appearance. There was no way he was going to eat at _Ichiban_ looking like that. It was too formal; too elegant. He was most likely eating at the fancy restaurant across the street, judging by his attire.

And thus, that thought brought her back to the current dilemma at hand.

It irked her to no end that Naruto was still talking to the hostess. Heck, the girl was probably encouraging him to talk to her. Was there really that much to talk about when it comes to ramen? She'd been standing there for more than thirty minutes, shivering from the cold and leaning into Sasuke for warmth. By the time they get in, she wouldn't be surprised if she was an ice cube.

"If you're not with the brat, then who are you with?" Ikuto had his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes scanning the area around her and finally stopping at the figure she was leaning on. Said body part narrowed slightly, as if willing for the figure to go away.

Sasuke noticed this and turned his back fully on the two males. Sakura was surprised by the sudden movement and fell onto Sasuke, resulting into them both leaning heavily on each other's back.

"You could've told me you were moving, idiot." Sakura mumbled, an irritated expression visible on her face. She put her hands on her hips and sharply moved her head back, making it collide with the nape of his neck. He let out a grunt and threw a glare over his shoulder, which Sakura chose to ignore.

"What's up with you and red clouds?" Ikuto looked at her shirt with curiosity and amusement. He had seen some of her clothes lying around before and most of them had had that exact design printed all over them.

"What's up with you and the color black?" Sakura didn't like answering personal questions. And her affiliation with Akatsuki was one of them.

"… Touché." He frowned at her and glanced at the boy behind her. "You didn't answer my question though. Who are you with?"

"What's it to y—"

"Ikuto-kun… I've been waiting for you. I thought you wouldn't come."

All heads turned toward the source of the voice. Had the Jack's Chair and the cat thief not focused their attention on the person standing a few meters away from their odd group, they wouldn't have missed the scene happening behind their backs.

They had not seen Sakura instinctively hold onto Sasuke's hand, the latter whirling around to face the rosette. She wasn't looking at him though. Her gaze was directed to the person walking towards them, and as he followed her stare, he gripped her hand and stepped in front of her.

Had not seen the way Sakura could do nothing but grip his hand for dear life as her breath caught in her throat and her pupils dilated in fear.

They hadn't noticed that Naruto had stopped talking to the hostess and was now standing protectively beside Sasuke with his right hand gripping the girl's left one, effectively hiding her from view.

They had missed the way Sasuke and Naruto became tensed, as if readying themselves for a fight, and had missed the murderous looks the two were sending the newcomer.

They hadn't seen all that because they were too busy staring at the person who stood before them, lips curled in a vile smirk, eyes slanted in an eerie snake-like way, and skin so pale it was almost translucent.

Because Orochimaru had that effect on people. No matter who they were or whether if they knew him or not.

"Ahhh… Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun… Sakura-hime. What a pleasant surprise," he greeted, his voice sickly sweet as he casually walked past the two stunned boys and stopped in front of the trio. His eyes swept through them quickly before coming to rest on the figure that was supposedly well hidden behind them.

Naruto sneered at him, his face contorting into a look of utmost disgust and dislike.

Sasuke's lips were pressed into a tight line. The only sign of his loathing was shown in his eyes; his obsidian oculars that didn't bother to hide the animosity he felt towards the man.

Sakura steeled herself and suppressed the urge to curl into a ball right then and there. She put on a blank mask; face void of any emotion, posture straight and unyielding. Her hands were gripping her teammates' tightly, focusing all of her tension there.

She would not show weakness in front of this man. Not when she knew perfectly well what he was capable of doing.

"Why are you even _here_? You know what, never mind. Just stay _away_ from us, Oro-bastard! Go back to where you came from and stop messing with our lives!" Naruto shouted, a string of profanities and insults following afterwards.

"Naruto, stop it," the rosette said, effectively cutting him off of his rant. "I apologize for my teammate's behavior, Orochimaru-san." She stepped out from behind the two, hands still locked onto each of them. She discreetly sent them both a look, and turned her attention back to the snake-like man.

"Aww, Sakura-hime! I'm touched! Call me 'Oro-kun.' Orochimaru-san makes me feel old! And to answer your question, Naruto-kun, I'm here to fetch Ikuto-kun. We have… business to talk about." Orochimaru gave the teenager a smug look, then moved his gaze to the pinkette.

Sakura couldn't even believe what she was hearing. The snake had to be lying. He was always lying. There was no way Ikuto worked for this guile man. Sakura didn't want to believe it.

She had come to know Ikuto and as far as she was concerned, he did not work for evil snakes who experimented on little children. He had told her how his dream was to go around the world and find his dad. He never mentioned anything about a man with long hair, pale skin and slanted golden eyes. Not even once.

"I'll be there in a while."

And that was all she needed to hear.

Ikuto had voiced his consent. He was, indeed, working for the disgusting man—if you could even call him that.

Sakura felt like she was in a box. A box that was slowly shrinking with her inside it.

"That's what I'd like to hear, Ikuto-kun. You're actually a very efficient worker."

The walls and the ceiling were closer to her now. If she reached her arms out, she'd be able to graze their surface.

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama."

It was squishing her. She was already curled up tightly and yet, despite her futile efforts, it closed around her. Enveloping her whole form and leaving no spaces in between.

And then, she was back in her apartment, and Ikuto had his head on her lap, as she played with his hair. He was dressed in his usual black clothing and his eyes were fixed on hers. He was telling her about how sorry he was; about how he was forced into it and how he had no choice. She never questioned him on what he was talking about though. Sakura just listened to him rant and apologize again and again. She knew that he needed someone to listen to him; someone to hear his opinions, his voice.

And Sakura would be that someone, for his sake.

She wouldn't deny the fact that the two had gotten closer since the first time they met, and they found themselves confiding in one another more often than not. He wasn't as close to her as her teammates were, but he was definitely closer than anyone she's met so far.

That was why he was able to look through her carefully constructed mask as if it wasn't even there. And he felt his heart ache knowing that his blossom was pained and stressed.

"Sakura-hime, we'll be taking our leave." Orochimaru said as he reached his hand out to caress her hair.

She instinctively jerked back and flinched away from him, hands immediately letting go of her teammates' and moving to clutch her head. Her eyes were wide and dilated with fear and her teeth grounded together painfully as she held in a shriek.

"_Don't touch me, you bastard!"_

Naruto and Sasuke were instantly standing in front of her, a kunai gripped in each of their hands and directed towards the pale man who held his arms up in surrender. A large grin was set on his face and it looked so wrong, clashing with his gestures of meaning no harm.

Because his smile portrayed pleasure and malicious intent, not remorse or regret.

Sakura was vaguely aware of someone approaching her, reaching out to her. She looked up alarmed, but calmed down when she saw familiar cerulean eyes filled with worry, concern. She immediately circled her arms around him and buried her face in his chest.

Naruto's warmth engulfed her as she felt him hug back. Sasuke had taken off his jumper some time ago, and had put the hood over her head to cover her shaking form.

This was something familiar.

Something she recognized.

He was carrying her now, she noted, with Sasuke trudging along beside them. His arms were on her back and hooked under her legs.

He would usually carry her like this when she was sad because she'd grip his shirt and cry into his chest; it was rather different from his customary piggyback when she was bubbly and smiling.

And that was what she did.

If she had the heart to look back, she would've seen the way Ikuto and Kukai glared at two things; Orochimaru, and her teammates' back. The former caused her pain, while the latter got to comfort her while they couldn't.

It was unfair that they weren't the ones who got to do that.

But she didn't look back because she was too engrossed in her teammates' company and was fighting from letting more tears fall from her eyes.

"Sakura…" said a voice coming from her right. She peeked at him from under the hood and through her fringe to find his obsidian oculars intently gazing into her own.

"It's okay to cry." Sasuke rested his hand on her head and gently stroked her hair through the thick fabric of his jumper, before giving her a soft smile that was only for her.

She turned away from him and buried her face back into Naruto's chest. She couldn't hold them in anymore.

So she let the tears fall.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Heheheh. I bet you thought the person who said "Ikuto-kun" was a girl. xD DUNDUNDUN.**

**Ohhai, guise~ HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! I just want to apologise for updating so late. I wanted to update this Christmas, but I've been kind of busy. Nonetheless, that shouldn't be an excuse. So I attempted (and failed) to make this chapter kind of dramatic and stuff. Is it? Oh well. Regarding my update pattern, I'll be updating once every month. During summer break, perhaps once a week, but no promises. Freshman year is just really hard so ahh. Moving on to the chapter itself. So what did you guise think? Was it good? Which Shugo Chara character do you want to see Sakura with? How about a Naruto character? Share your thoughts! ;3**

**Happy author is happy~ **

**LEAVE A COMMENT. C:**


	8. Shirts and Revelations

**Disclaimer: I donut own Naruto or Shugo Chara and blablabla. **

**Chapter 8: Shirts and Revelations**

His footsteps echoed rather loudly through the deserted hallway. It was nearly midnight and, normally, people would be sleeping by now. But there he was, feet trudging on the carpeted floor, bringing him ever closer to his destination with each step he took.

The door seemed to get farther and farther away from him, but he knew he was being delusional. And as he got nearer, he saw a tiny patch of light escaping through the tiny crack at the bottom of the door, indicating that there was someone inside.

He was here to find answers; answers to the questions that had been bugging him for the past few months. How many months had passed since the incident? Two months? Three? Four? He had lost count. He wasn't a very patient person and by now, he would usually have all the information he would need to solve the puzzle that was in his head.

But then again, Haruno Sakura was a very confusing puzzle indeed.

He had tried to ask her, confront her, but he couldn't. She was either out training or she was never alone. And when the perfect opportunity arises, she would suddenly yawn and walk away, claiming that she was tired from a long day's work.

He wasn't stupid. He knew that she was avoiding the topic. What he didn't know was why. Why she would flinch and stay away from it as if it was a plague. And yet, he would still try the day after, thinking that, maybe, just maybe, she would offer him a decent answer.

But she never did.

So now he had no choice but to confront the man that had caused her to have this reaction whenever his name was mentioned; the man that had caused a strain in their relationship.

He wouldn't lie. Ever since the night of the incident, she seemed to withdraw from him; seemed more cautious when he was around. She had put her guard up again and he didn't appreciate that. The minute they had finally grown unnervingly close, they were suddenly pulled apart.

He had tried to ignore it at first, but he couldn't turn a blind eye to something that was right in front of him. It was at that time that he finally realized how much he valued her friendship. How much it tore him apart to see how easily others could talk to her and yet he had difficulty in just getting to see her.

When he did see her, she had this distant look in her eyes. As if she was recalling something that had happened. He liked that much better than seeing the hurt in them; the sadness, the _fear_. He hated it when she would flinch every time he would reach out to her. When her idiotic teammates would do that, she had no problem whatsoever and seemed to even _enjoy_ it. Heck, even when the Souma-brat would touch her and hug her she wouldn't flinch away. He would feel this rising urge to tear them away from her and just keep her for himself.

He was jealous of them. He wouldn't deny it. He had tried to, but the feeling would come back stronger than before. The day he accepted it, he started to feel numb and a great sadness took over him.

A soft sigh escaped from his lips as he stood in front of the door. He wasn't sure how long he had been standing there, but he was sure that the person who resided inside the room was well aware of his presence by now. He would do this, he decided. He _needed_ to do this. As he strengthened his resolve, his knuckles slowly tapped on the wooden surface.

"Come in."

His hand hesitantly turned the doorknob and pushed it inwards. He took a step forward and, once his whole body was inside, shut the door quietly behind him.

The room was large, with a lone, wooden desk displayed in the middle of the room. The walls were stark white and the floor was carpeted with crimson red rugs. There were numerous shelves surrounding the room, leaving absolutely no wall uncovered. It was a simple room, and he would have loved to bring Sakura in here for her to see all the books that were arranged neatly across the wooden shelves. She would've loved it here, had it been void of its current inhabitant.

"Ahhh… Ikuto-kun, what a pleasant surprise," the man drawled out, feigning innocence to Ikuto as he leaned forward to rest his chin on his laced fingers.

"Orochimaru-sama," Ikuto greeted, his head bowing slightly as a sign of respect. He never felt any to the man in front of him though. He despised this man.

"What brings you here at this peculiar hour?" he asked, mockery and humor dancing in his golden eyes. He motioned for the teenager to sit across from him on a red velvet chair that was placed in front of his desk. Ikuto complied almost immediately, wanting to know the answers to the questions that have swarmed his mind for the past few months.

"I would like to ask a question." He would want to get this over with quickly, seeing as he did not want to be in the presence of the snake-like man more than what was necessary.

Orochimaru nodded, the corner of his lips tugging upwards to form a malicious grin. He had probably been waiting for Ikuto to confront him for a long time, judging by his actions and body gestures.

Ikuto on the other hand, was starting to feel anxious. He was sure that he wanted to know the reason why Sakura was avoiding this question, so why was he nervous? Why did he have this feeling that the only thing the answer would bring him was dread?

He shook off his doubts and steeled himself. His face took on an impassive look as he stated the question that had been plaguing him ever since the night of the incident.

"What is your affiliation with Haruno Sakura?"

* * *

><p>"H-Huh?"<p>

"You heard me. What is your relationship with that snake guy?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Souma."

It was a bright, sunny, Saturday afternoon and two members of the Guardians were out in a dango shop.

Haruno Sakura was both shocked and confused when her fellow Guardian, Souma Kukai, asked if she wanted to go get some dango earlier that day. Sakura, for lack of better things to do, said yes. It looked like a beautiful day after all.

But then again, appearances could be deceiving.

"Don't lie to me, Haruno. You were shaking when you saw him. Did you know how worried I was?" he said while leaning forward. He had gone there in hopes of finally getting the truth out of Sakura, but it seems that this was a harder feat than he had first thought.

"Ask me no questions, I tell you no lies, Souma. You should know that by now." Sakura wouldn't play with him. She knew he was serious about this, but she was really running out of patience with this question.

It was already enough that Ikuto would ask her every time he saw her and Kukai would ask her every day during school. And now Kukai was bugging her during the weekend. They were really testing the boundaries of their luck because, soon enough, she was going to punch them so hard in the head that they'd forget who they were. But, sadly, that was still soon to come.

Right now, she still had questions to ward off.

"This isn't a game, Haruno. Stop avoiding the subject and just answer it." It was obvious by the tone of his voice that he was getting rather annoyed. His choice of words just backed up the statement.

That irritated Sakura.

How dare he say that to her? Did he honestly think that if it wasn't that important she wouldn't have told him already? Did he think that she was enjoying this? Enjoying them swarming to her with questions about her past? About the past that she so badly wanted to forget? Did he really think that to her, this was all just some sick game she made up for her own pleasure?

Sakura's blood was boiling. She stood up from her seat and glared full force at the brunette in front of her. An almost inaudible growl tore through her chest as she tried to contain the anger she felt at that moment. She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her skin as the blood flowed steadily from her palm and through her fingers. It dripped to the floor, staining the wooden boards red.

"Who do you think you are saying that to me, huh? Think, Souma. Why do you think I'm avoiding your questions? Maybe it's because they're too _personal_. I'm only going to say this to you once, Souma, so listen, and listen good. _Mind your own business,_" she bit out, before turning and leaving the store.

She ignored the yells and shouts behind her as she continued to stomp towards her apartment. Sakura did not want deal with him right now. His words really irked her to no end. But underneath all that anger was a small puddle of guilt. The only reason he was asking was because he was worried about her. It wasn't like he'd tell the whole school about it.

Sakura shook her head. Still. He didn't have to ask like that. He could've said it in a nicer way.

A sigh escaped from the Jester's lips as she trudged on. She was sure that once she'd calmed down, the guilt would start to settle. But Sakura, much like Naruto, lived in the moment. Itachi and Sasuke would constantly nag at her about how everything she does would have a consequence, but she wouldn't listen. The Uchiha brothers would always reprimand her when she does something reckless.

Sakura appreciated this gesture because it was their way of showing her that they care.

The rosette turned sharply, fist pulled back to deliver a hard punch to whoever grabbed her shoulder. A smirk formed on her face as she felt it connect with flesh and heard her assailant let out a pained grunt. But her smug expression quickly turned into one of worry as she took a good look at her 'attacker.'

"Souma! Why'd you do that?" She was fussing over him now, because there was blood smeared across the middle of his white shirt. He was clutching it and let out a soft hiss when Sakura touched it.

"Why'd _I _do that? Why'd _you_ do that? Geez, Haruno! I knew you could do Martial Arts stuff, but I didn't know you packed that much of a punch!" he said, a small grin playing on his features as he watched her frantic movements.

Sakura ignored his loud statement and started pulling his arm towards her apartment. She had stopped panicking once she realized that the blood on his shirt wasn't his. It was hers. So she had sobered up enough to start pulling him to her place. It was near enough and wouldn't take that long to get there.

Kukai's face contorted in pain with each step he took. Who knew walking would hurt this much? He made a mental note to never anger Sakura directly. Kami knew how long he'd have to stay in the hospital.

Sakura slung his arm around her neck and continued to tug him in the direction of her flat. She didn't mean to hurt him that badly. Now that her anger had subsided, the only thing she felt was guilt. That was bad.

With guilt in her system, it would be a tad easier for her to surrender.

Kami help her.

* * *

><p>"Take off your shirt."<p>

Kukai's face turned bright red after having heard the sentence leave her lips. He was sitting on her bed with Sakura's intimidating form looming over him. She had just recently disinfected and bandaged her hands and was now reaching out one of them in order to get his shirt.

He wasn't letting her though. Both of his hands were gripping the hem of his shirt and tugging them down. Sakura was prying his fingers off, but to no avail. The Jack's Chair was just that stubborn.

"Come on, Souma. Stop being such a girl," she whined, standing back and putting her hands on her hips in a frustrated manner. She was getting rather impatient waiting for the soccer player to get over his insecurities.

He's a _male_ _soccer player_ for crying out loud.

"Why do I have to take off my shirt? I'm fine!" he insisted, waving his hands in front of him as a form of defence and reassurance.

Sakura gave him a blank stare and evaded his hands. She pushed both her pointer and middle finger into his torso. Kukai cringed and recoiled at the sudden contact, letting out a yelp of surprise.

"See? You're not. I'm not gonna molest you, if that's what you're thinking. Just take off your shirt so I can treat your bruise, princess," she drawled out, her voice tinged with slight annoyance as she narrowed her viridian eyes at him.

He was acting like such a drama queen. If he just took his shirt off earlier, he would have it back on by now. It's not like she'd ogle at him. She wasn't one of his fangirls.

Kukai hesitated before tugging his shirt over his head and handing it to her. She took it wordlessly and went to the laundry room to put it in the washer. On her way back, she grabbed a few bandages and ointment for his bruise before entering her room.

"That wasn't so hard now was it?" She chuckled at the pout he gave and set herself beside him with her legs in a criss crossed position. She put the bandages and anaesthetics on the bed and motioned for him to lie down.

"Yeah, it was," he grumbled, flinching slightly when he lowered himself into his back.

His cheeks were tinged with pink as her eyes landed on his abdomen. She was staring intensely at his torso with calculating eyes.

Sakura nodded once before taking one of the tubes she brought and uncapped it. The pinkette gently squeezed it, resulting into whitish goo flowing out. She applied some onto her hand and began to spread it across his skin.

"You didn't answer my question," he said suddenly, dark green eyes piercing hers. She froze up momentarily before sighing. He really wouldn't stop badgering her about it. She didn't know why she was going to tell him and not Ikuto.

It would be unfair. Ikuto had been just as persistent as Kukai—if not more – except he had fewer chances to do so since he was in high school and she had been out as late as she could as to avoid his questions.

"Do you really want to know?" Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it was rather loud in the quiet room.

This was it. She was finally going to tell someone. Someone— other than her teammates and friends— would know about that part of her past.

This terrified her.

How would he react when he finds out? Would he pity her? Be disgusted with her? Would he not want to have anything to do with her? Would he use it against her?

There was only one way to find out.

"Yeah, I do." His eyes bore into hers, sparkling with determination. When he saw her nod vaguely, he readied himself for her revelations; face impassive, eyes locked with hers and fists closed.

"Okay, but don't go all pity mode on me, Souma."

"I was seven when it happened. I was curious, you know? People just kept whispering about him, gossiping about him. Us kids, we only knew him as the 'snake-man.' From what we've heard, he looked just like a snake. I wanted to see if it was true. If there really was a 'snake-man' out there." Sakura let out a dry chuckle as she stared at Kukai. She had finished putting the ointment on him when she started talking and now had her hands resting on his abdomen.

"_Did you hear? The snake took another victim yesterday."_

"_Yes, yes. I heard about that one. Poor old man. He sold the best bread around at a reasonable price too."_

"There really was. You saw him that night, along with Ikuto. I saw him when I was seven, all alone in his cabin. I was planning it for a while now, and I trained as fast as I could to get to the forest before dark. And then I saw him. He was working on a dead person. Cutting up its face, pouring chemicals into its mouth. I was frozen. I couldn't move. But then he looked at me. And I just knew I had to run away. He looked so animalistic, so— so_ evil._" Her eyes were glazed over by now, and her hands were curled into fists. Red was seeping through the bandages, indicating that her cuts have been opened again.

_Sakura peeked into a dusty window, standing on her toes to get a better look at the rumoured man. She immediately regretted it. The man turned and there was only one thing she saw before she felt her feet running once more;_

_Yellow._

"So I ran. I ran as fast I could to the gate. I was almost there. I remember seeing the village gate, but I got pulled back. Someone pulled me back and dragged me back into the forest. I kept screaming and shouting, but no one came. No one heard." The rosette's breathing was shallow and strained, and her eyes were wide. It was as if she was reliving the past all over again. Kukai sat up with some difficulty, and held her hands, eyes darting all over her face in concern.

"_Let go of me! Let _go_! Someone help! Sasuke! Naruto! Kaka-sensei! _ANYONE_!"_

"_HAHAHA! Foolish little girl! No one will come. Scream all you want!" _

"He stuck so many needles into me; put so many chemicals into my system. I felt like a guinea pig; like some lab rat used for experiments. I kept throwing up, screaming, crying. Those were the only things I could do, anyways. He had me strapped to the table. I was so scared. My teammates found me days later. I was afraid they wouldn't come at all." By this time, Kukai had wrapped his arms around her and pulled her onto his lap. Her forehead was resting on the crook of his neck, her hands gripping his arm.

"_I'll find the Embryo with this. You shall be my weapon, my tool. I will use you and you will be only mine to control. I will cause you pain and suffering far worse than anything you could ever imagine! And then I will make sure that you do my bidding._

_And you cannot refuse."_

"I wouldn't leave my room for the next few weeks. I was traumatized. Every night I'd have a nightmare about him. Even now when I see his face, I feel like I'm seven years old again; weak, vulnerable, _useless_," Sakura stayed silent after that and so did Kukai. None of them uttered a word. The only sound that could be heard was their breathing.

"_Sakura-chan! Come out! Come on! We're here for you!"_

Sakura waited for him to push her away, scream at her, and call her weak, _anything._ But it never came. She waited for him to whip out his phone and start calling the Guardians and start telling the school all about her. _But it never came._

He wasn't doing anything. Just sitting there, holding her. He wasn't whispering words of reassurance or sending her pitying gazes.

He was just _there_.

"I sound like a stupid coward," she finally said, a bittersweet smile spreading across her face. Her grip on his arm tightened. She needed something to hold onto; something to tell her that this was real.

"Yes, but no. You were seven years old, Sakura. And even though you were trained, what could've you done?" the brunette said, resting his chin on top of her head and inhaling her scent. She smelled just like her namesake. It was intoxicating.

A blanket of silence fell over them. It wasn't awkward or weird. It was more of comforting than anything else. Both felt content with just staying there; enjoying each other's presence without having to converse. Sakura didn't feel the need to and, for once, the two didn't start arguing over something as trivial as taking a shirt off.

"I'll protect you, Sakura."

Her eyes snapped up to meet his as she scanned his face for traces of a lie. Instead, she found determination and something she couldn't quite figure out.

The Jester broke away from his gaze and suddenly became painfully aware of the close proximity between them. Blood rushed to her cheeks as she noted that he was still shirtless.

True, she had seen her teammates shirtless most of the time, but Kukai wasn't part of her team. And he was a _soccer player. _Much likeInuzuka Kiba, he had a very well-built body. Sometimes when they would play, he'd unexpectedly take off his shirt— much to Sakura's dismay— stating that it was bothering him. This, of course, would cause the pinkette to lose her focus and start stuttering.

Which was what was happening right now—minus the stuttering part.

Sakura ignored the fluttering feeling in her stomach and hesitantly wrapped her arms around his torso. She then proceeded to close her eyes and let out a deep breath. She was sure that Kukai's shirt would've been dried by now, but couldn't muster up the energy to stand up and bring it back. The bandages on her hands that were once white were now stained with red splotches. She needed to fix that.

But she'd do them later. She felt too comfortable just sitting there with Kukai's warmth surrounding her.

That was when her bedroom door opened to reveal a certain blue haired teenager.

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><p>Ikuto was confused. He didn't know whether or not to believe in the information his boss had just fed him. He sounded as if he was telling the truth.<p>

And that was what unnerved him.

Orochimaru had sounded so honest that he didn't know what to think. Ikuto had gotten so used to his sly, deceiving tone that he was stunned to hear utmost sincerity in his voice. Sure, his creepy slits for eyes were radiating with smugness, but his tone held no malice. So he was left to think.

_"Why should I believe you? For all I know, you could be lying."_

He really couldn't tell. Before he had confronted the snake-like man about his blossom, he had thought that he knew his patterns and mannerisms. Before he even _met_ his blosso- Since when did he start referring to her as _his? _Although he must admit, it did have a nice ring to it.

_His blossom._

A chuckle escaped from the teenager's lips, his dilemma currently forgotten as his thoughts focused on the pink haired Chara bearer. His joy, however, was short-lived. Thinking about Sakura made him think about the information he had just acquired pertaining bits of her past.

His scowl returned as his feet automatically moved forward.

_"Oh? Then by all means ask Sakura-hime. I'm sure she'd agree."_

Dark blue eyes narrowed as he thought about their earlier conversation. If what Orochimaru said was true, then he really was a sick bastard. No one in their right mind would do that to a kid_. No one_. Hell, the bastard even sounded proud when he talked about his _'accomplishments.'_

_"It was one of the best moments of my existence. Doing that, hearing her screams; it felt euphoric."_

He was disgusted. More so than ever.

And so, he did the only thing he think of- Ask Sakura.

So there he was standing at her doorstep, not knowing whether to go inside and ask, no, _demand_ her for answers, or just walk away and think about it for another day or so.

'_You're already here. Might as well go for it.' _He thought, letting out a deep sigh.

He reached forward, hand gripping onto the doorknob and turning it. _'That's odd...' _ It wasn't locked. That must've meant that she was, indeed, somewhere inside her apartment. Ikuto looked around for any sign of life around the place, but upon finding none, his feet automatically brought him in front of her bedroom.

Maybe he shouldn't have went here in the first place. Maybe it was too soon to be demanding her for an answer. She might just blow up in his face once she finds out that he asked someone else. But it's not like he could help it. She wasn't answering his questions so he had no choice! Of course, he could've waited, but—

'_Quit making excuses and just get in there!'_

Without another thought, the Tsukiyomi pushed her door open, poised to shout her name, but was stopped short the second his eyes fell on the two figures on the bed.

'_Sakura... And the brat...?'_

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><p><strong>AN: OH GOSH. Ikuto walked in on a bed scene! Kidding, he didn't... yet. u Loljk, no. HAHAHHAA.**

**Hi... First of all, SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO UPDATE. TT^TT I had school and it was hell and I had training and extra classes so I really had no time to write and update. ;n; BUT WORRY NOT for it's summer vacation! So yes, I'll be (Hopefully) updating more often. I won't make anymore promises in fear of breaking them, so, I'll just say that I will indeed be updating the story now.**

**SORRY AGAIN. TT^TT God, I'm such a bad person. OTL**

**ANYWAYS.**

**LEAVE A REVIEW! They are very much appreciated and they motivate me quite a lot. :3**


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